Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo
by RSBCS
Summary: Gaito has been vanquished, and Mikeru has returned to the ancients. All is peaceful once more for Luchia Nanami and the Mermaid Princesses. But when a new threat strikes back from somewhere unknown, the mermaids must take up their mics once more. This time, though, they won't be alone. Can they succeed like before while keeping their love lives intact?
1. Mermaid Prophecy

**Greetings everyone! Welcome!**

 **I'm not exactly sure what to say about this story, beyond that after watching the anime, this was another of those "The ending just wasn't satisfying enough, I wish there was more" moments. This one I was a little hesitant to put up on my first profile, but I got a lot of people saying it was well done, and even suggested putting it up here.**

 **Now, I will warn you ahead of time, at points where there are songs sung, I may or may not have the lyrics along with it just yet. Mostly because subs haven't been completely reliable. If anyone reads and knows the lyrics, I would very much like to ask for help so I can make the story more like the anime.**

 **I do not own Mermaid Melody. All rights belong to their respective owners.**

 **Well, enough from me. Enjoy!**

Chapter 1: The Mermaid Prophecy

On the beaches of East Japan, not too far from a small hotel called Pearl Piari, there sat a girl of about 14-years of age. As she sat on the beach, with her blond hair being blown by the coastal breeze, she gazed at the waves as a spiky, orange haired surfer continued to ride the rough crests of sea water. The surfer, more commonly known as Kaito Doumoto, glanced back to the girl on the beach, smirked, and gave her a thumbs up. The girl, also known as Luchia Nanami, smiled very cheerfully and waved back.

After a few more minutes of surfing and practicing, Kaito and Luchia hung out on a picnic blanket as Kaito chowed down on the bento (Japanese-packed lunch) Luchia made for him.  
"Ah. Doesn't this feel great Luchia?" Kaito sighed, staring out to sea.  
"Yeah. It really does feel wonderful." Luchia replied, "It almost feels too good to be true." What the two were referring to was the peace of the seas. A couple times in the paast year, certain forces had tried to disturb that peace and destroy her homes. But each time, the threat was stopped by Luchia and her friends.  
But this particular afternoon wasn't going to be as enjoyable as Luchia would like it to be. True, she was hanging out with Kaito and everything. It was just that there was a bit of bad news that she needed to share with Kaito. And it involved her other self.  
Finding the courage to speak, Luchia told Kaito, "Actually, Kaito, there's something I need to tell you."  
Intrigued, Kaito asked what it was. Before Luchia could say anything, he said, "It has something to do with you being a Mermaid Princess, right?" Luchia was caught somewhat by surprise, but it didn't startle her that much. Luchia was, in truth, a mermaid. And a special one at that: a Mermaid Princess. They were basically rulers who lived in the seven ocean palaces around the world, keeping the peace from sea demons or other evil and malefic beings that threatened it. Their pearls gave them the power to use their songs to weaken enemies or sometimes re-invigorate their friends.

When Luchia was young, she rescued Kaito from an accident at sea, and immediately fell in love with him. When she got older, she returned to the surface and encountered Kaito while searching for her pearl. When Kaito found out that Luchia was the mermaid who rescued him, he returned the pearl to her to help combat some sea demons that sought to capture her. However, at that time, Kaito only knew about her mermaid form, not her human form. But over time, he began to discover the link between her two sides, and realized that they were the same person. And they became closer afterwards

Back to the present, Luchia let her head hang in dismay as she shared what she dreaded to share with Kaito.  
"I got a letter from my kingdom in the North Pacific." she explained, "I have to return home tomorrow. Now that the Indian Ocean Mermaid Princess is born, I have to teach her how to be one." This information puzzled Kaito quite a bit.  
"How come you can't teach her here? Is something wrong?" KAito questioned. But honestly, he already had an idea of why she had to return home.  
"Onee-chan says that as long as I'm here on the surface, I would be distracted. And that it would be bad for Seira to become too involved in the human world like I have."  
"So you have to go back to remind yourself of where you come from?" Kaito surmised. all Luchia did in response was nod. Both of them knew that Luchia couldn't stay on land forever. At some point, she would have to return to the sea, her home.  
Still, Kaito smirked and replied "Well, you know what I'll be doing. Living life on the waves and such."  
"Aw, Kaito!" Luchia exclaimed, slightly offended, "Don't you care that I might never see you again."  
Kaito chuckled a little and told her, "I'll be thinking of you with each passing day." That was the thing with Kaito: sometimes he joked a little too much and Luchia would take it the wrong way and overreact. But even so, he meant well and cared about Luchia just as much as she cared about him. Then, the two gazed into each others eyes, and shared a kiss.

After that, Luchia returned to Pearl Piari. As she entered the foyer, a girl with agua-colored hair [aquamarine] leaped in front of her and bombarded her with questions.  
"Luchia, how did it go? Is Kaito going to miss you when you leave? Have you told him yet?"  
"Oi, Hanon. Let me come in first."  
Hanon, like Luchia, was also a Mermaid Princess. But, she did have a habit of getting into Luchia's love life with Kaito, especially when it did not necessarily involve her.  
So bypassing her, Luchia sat down and recounted what had happened at the beach.  
"That's it?" Hanon quizzed when she finished, "i would've thought Kaito would be more concerned about you leaving than how he was." Luchia thought so too, and the thought continued to depress her. She and Kaito had only recently just gotten back together after Kaito overcame some amnesia he had developed while surfing in Hawaii. That fact that they were splitting up so soon saddened her.  
Picking up on the mood, Hanon urgently preked back up and assured, "But I'm sure Kaito meant more than what he said. And besides, you won't be away forever. You could sneak back here with Seira whenever you can."  
"Yeah, I guess you're right." Luchia replied glumly.  
"Don't let it get to you Luchia." came Rina, the Green Pearl Mermaid Princess, "No matter what, you and Kaito will always be thinking of each other." As Rina came down from the staircase, she was accompanied by a younger girl with bright, orange hair.  
"If you want, we can say that something came up and we have to stay on land, Luchia." Seira suggested. The thought did cross her mind at some point, until a certain penguin in sailor's clothes jumped on the table and chastised,  
"Absolutely not! You will not shirk your responsibilities as a Mermaid Princess for some human boy! I simply will not allow it!"  
"Hippo, I was only kidding." Seira assured.  
"A mermaid princess must not become so fixated on the human world. you must learn to take matters seriously like Luchia does, Seira-san. Right, Luchia-san?" But Hippo's interference only caused Luchia to dwell on the thoughts of never seeing Kaito again even more. Luchia wasn't even sure how much more heartache she could take.  
To counter this, Hanon grabbed Hippo, muzzled him with her hand, and told Luchia, "Don't worry Luchia. What Hippo meant to say was that you won't be apart for long. You'll teach Seira how to be a Mermaid Princess and be back before you know it. Right, Hippo?" And she glared into Hippo to make sure he got the message.  
Pressured by the stare, Hippo replied while still muffled, "Right. What Hanon-san said." Even though she knew her friends meant well, it hurt even more for her friends to comfort her. Without another word, Luchia headed up to hr room for the night.  
When she left, Rina told Hippo, "You really ran your mouth today. Luchia's already hurt because she has to leave. The least you could do is help her during this time."  
"And encourage her engagement with Kaito?!" Hippo retaliated, "Absolutely unthinkable! I will not allow it!" But the stares from Rina and Hanon caused him to rethink his position. When it came to Luchia, Hippo always lost. However, Seira just gazed up to where Luchia went, feeling empathetic towards her predicament.

As Luchia was in the bath, her thoughts continued to swirl around her and Kaito. Looking at her tail, she recounted all the times she spent with him. When they went to school together, when they discovered the haunted house and it's secret, the play they were a part of, when Kaito rescued her during a blizzard, even the times when Luchia had to compete with another girl who fought for Kaito's affection. All the experiences they had shared, mermaid and human, were priceless to her. But at the same time, she was afraid. Last time they separated, Kaito ended up forgetting her almost completely. What would happen this time?  
Once Luchia was done in the bath, she started to finish packing her things away. In the midst of it, she couldn't help looking at the twin-heart ring Kaito gave her when he first went to Hawaii.  
"Kaito." Luchia muttered to herself. But then, a tap on the window caught her attention. When she looked outside, she saw Kaito below trying to get her attention.  
She opened the window to her balcony, and Kaito called out, "Luchia, come with me."

Not long after that were Kaito and Luchia sitting on an inlet looking out to sea, a little away from the main shore. Kaito was dressed in his usual white shirt and jeans, however Luchia was in her mermaid form. Her blond hair was longer and tied in two, long pigtails, and her tail was pink.  
The sudden meeting surprised Luchia quite a bit. What was Kaito up to right now?  
"Luchia. I may not know everything that's going on." Kaito spoke, "But I don't want you to forget that I love you. No matter where you are, I want you to remember that.  
"Kaito." Luchia responded in admiration, but she quickly turned sullen and replied, "But what if I never see you again? What should I do then?"  
To answer, Kaito gripped Luchia's hand and told her, "Whenever you feel lonely, just look at this to remember me." Then he pulled out his pendant that he used to carry her pearl in and continued, "And I'll always wear this to remember you. No matter where we are or what we are doing, we'll always remember each other." Luchia looked to Kaito, tears swelling up in her eyes. then she flung herself onto him and began to cry. Kaito hugged her back to comfort her.  
"If anything should happen to you," he whispered in her ear, "I'll come find you." And they held in each others embrace while the night wore on.

Early the next morning, Luchia, Hanon, Rina, and Seira stood on the beach to see Luchia and Seira off. But they were also waiting for Kaito to come see Luchia off. But he was late.  
"Geez. How long does Kaito expect us to wait for him?" Hanon complained.  
"Be patient. Kaito will show up." Rina assured her.  
"That's what you said a few minutes ago." Hanon moaned, "And Luchia is already late." Luchia was also worried. Kaito had promised to see her off, but he wasn't showing up.  
"Luchia." Seira spoke to her mentor. Then Hippo arrived, which meant that they couldn't wait any longer.  
"Alright, Luchia-san, Seira-san." Hippo proclaimed, "Let us return to the North Pacific palace.  
"Yeah." Luchia replied.  
But before she and Seira started walking to the sea, they heard Kaito cry out, "Luchia!" Turning back around, Luchia and the others spotted Kaito running towards them.  
Her sense of joy returning to her, Luchia ran to him and called back, "Kaito!"  
"Luchia-san, wait! We need to-" Hippo started. But he was quickly stopped by Hanon and Rina, who kept him from saying anymore. Once the two met up, Kaito took a little time to catch his breath.  
"Kaito. You really came." Luchia beamed.  
"Well, yeah. You didn't think I was going to let you leave without saying good-bye, right?" Kaito replied. Luchia immediately felt overjoyed. Once Kaito caught his breath, he picked up Luchia and carried her to the water.  
"Uh, Kaito?" Luchia said, puzzled.  
"Just one more time." was all he would say in reply. Once he was far enough, Kaito dove underwater with Luchia in tow. Once under, he let her go as they gazed at each other one last time. And for the last time then, they kissed.  
Until, "Luchia-san, we must go." Hippo urged the mermaid princess.  
"Farewell, Kaito." Luchia whispered to him. And then she followed Seira and hippo home.  
After they had gone some distance, Kaito swam for the surface.  
Once his head broke through, he muttered, "Farewell, Luchia."

The days rolled by in their usual fashion. Hanon and Rina spent some time with their boyfriends when they could. Kaito continued to surf to train himself for upcoming surf tournaments. But each time he did, Kaito would glance back at the shore for Luchia, only to remember that she had gone home to the sea. School was no different. During class, Kaito would glance back at her desk, but he found it empty each time.

The weekend after Luchia's departure, Kaito visited a huge mansion on the coastline. The residents of the mansion were friends of his from his accident in Hawaii. When he rang the doorbell, a man with salty-grey hair answered.  
"Ah Kaito. A pleasure to see you again." the man greeted warmly.  
"Hello, Rihito-san." KAito returned, "Is Mikaru home?"  
Instead of answering, a young girl's voice rang out, "Onii-sama, who is it?" Then, a child no older than four appeared next to Rihito.  
"Hello Mikaru." Kaito greeted the child.  
"Hello, Kaito-san." the young Mikaru returned cheerfully. Even though Kaito became used to this, he still remembered the Mikaru he knew before.

After Kaito's accident in Hawaii, he was rescued by the girl Mikaru. Only thing was that then, she was close to his own age. Because of his resulting amnesia, Mikaru became affectionate of Kaito and practically clung to him. This created a huge obstacle for him and Luchia with the new force attacking the Mermaid Princesses. And even when it was overcome, Mikaru fell into despair from the pain she felt from Kaito leaving her. Some complicated matters arose, and Maikaru became reborn into the little girl she was now. All of this ran through Kaito's mind, but failed to affect him as he visited Mikaru and Rihito.

After Kaito spent some time with Mikaru, Rihito took her up to bed to rest as night approached. When he came back, he noticed how distracted Kaito was.  
"You're still feeling guilty about what happened with Mikaru and Luchia?" he quizzed.  
"Huh?" Kaito quizzed, "Oh no, that's not it. Not entirely."  
"It's alright." Rihito assured, "We can't change what happened. What's done is done. Besides, it might be better this way." Kaito knew he meant Mikaru, but that wasn't on his mind right now. "I guess Luchia went home for something important?" Rihito asked. Kaito didn't respond. But he didn't need to.  
"It's hard, letting someone go even for a little while." Rihito continued, "I know for a fact that Luchia felt the same way when you were gone. It's only natural."  
Still facing out the window, Kaito inquired, "Rihito-san, what should I do? I've never felt like this before. What can I do?"  
Rihito got up, rested a hand on Kaito's shoulder, and replied, "Never lose faith."

Once Kaito's visit with Rihito was finished, Kaito returned to his home. This place also reminded him of Luchia. One time, when he fell ill, Luchia had come over to care for Kaito, and went somewhat out of control with her emotions. Then another time, during his amnesia period, he found her in his house while she had been cleaning it up. Once he entered, Kaito looked out towards the sea again as he continued to remember Luchia.  
"Luchia." he muttered softly.

But then, without warning, Kaito found himself at the bottom of the ocean. In front of him stood the North Pacific Palace.  
"What the-? What's going on?!" he exclaimed.  
Then Luchia's voice cried out, "Kaito!" And the scene shifted again. Above Kaito was a giant robot. In it's claws was some kind of person. It was Luchia!  
"Luchia!" Kaito called out to her.  
"Kaito! Save me!" Luchia pleaded. Then the claw retracted to a row of capsules in its chest, and placed Luchia in one of them. Then it sealed it up, and disappeared.

"LUCHIA!" Kaito yelled. In the impulse, he banged his hand on the window. As he reeled from the shock, Kaito pondered what he had just seen. Somehow, he knew it connected to Luchia and that she was somehow in trouble. He figured it was partly because of his being a Panterrassa, a clan of sorcerers linked to a dark past. So for some reason, Kaito knew he had to do something. And he knew two mermaids who could help.

As the phone rang on, Kaito tapped his foot nervously while waiting for the other end.  
"Hello. Pearl Piari." Rina's voice came on the receiver.  
"Rina, it's me." Kaito replied urgently.  
"Kaito?" Rina questioned, startled by Kaito's urgency, "What is it? What's wrong?"  
"Luchia's in trouble. Bring Hanon, and meet me in front of Pearl Piari." Kaito told her.  
"Okay. But what's wrong?"  
"I'll tell you then. But hurry." And Kaito hung up. Then he ran out of the house to meet with them.

In the meantime, Luchia was in her room, staring at her reflection in her mirrors. Several days had gone by, and the one thing on the forefront of Luchia's thoughts was Kaito. Even when she was teaching Seira, her mind wandered more often than not back to him. Thankfully, Seira understood Luchia's predicament and helped her avoid a riot among the other mermaids. In reality, Luchia only needed to teach her one thing: how to love. that was a task given to her by the original Orange Pearl Mermaid Princess, Sara. For Seira already knew about being a Mermaid Princess.  
But in her mind's wanderings, one of the mermaids entered the room.  
"Luchia-sama," she started, "It is tie for tonight's session."  
"Very well. I'll meet with Seira by the fountain." Luchia responded. So she drifted off for another teaching session.

Waiting for her by the fountain, Seira immediately perked up as Luchia approached.  
"Luchia." she greeted. And although Luchia knew her responsibility came first, she still could not help feeling down about missing Kaito.  
"Are you ready for tonight's lesson, Seira?" she inquired.  
"I'm ready. But, are you sure that you're ready?" The question struck Luchia like a bee sting. She figured Seira would pick up on her lack of dedication to teach. But she was still unprepared for how to respond.  
As she looked to her ring, Luchia sank to the ground as she replied, "I don't believe I am."  
Seira knelt down next to her, and comforted, "Luchia, maybe we should skip today's lesson. We could sneak back to the surface and visit Kaito again. We don't have to keep doing this."  
But Luchia shook her head and told Seira, "The sooner I am able to teach you everything about being a mermaid princess, the sooner we can return to the surface. Back to Hanon, Rina, and...Kaito."  
But then, Hippo came rushing over to the two mermaid princesses, looking frantic. "Luchia-san, Seira-san, We're in trouble!"  
"Trouble?" Luchia wondered, "What kind of trouble?"  
"Some huge object was spotted approaching the palace." he informed frantically, "It must be human because we don't know what it is." After hearing this, Luchia and Seira swam out of the palace to investigate.

What they saw puzzled them. Several feet above them, dropping like a stone, was a mammoth-sized robot. The contraption had various claws on its body, and massive treads on the bottom for feet. The head looked like an old-fashioned diver's helmet from colonial times. Once it crashed down near the palace, the two figured that it was trouble.  
"Finally!" boomed a mechanical voice from the giant, "After all my years of research, I've found it. One of the legendary mermaid kingdoms."  
Finding her courage, Luchia called back, "Who are you? And what do you intend to do here?"  
"Nothing that is of your concern. As you are about to become property of Dr. Hishki." Suddenly, one of its claws shot out for the mermaid princesses. Luchia managed to dodge it, but then more of them tried to catch them. So the two dodged and avoided the onslaught as much as they could. But in the midst of it, one of the claws torpedoed its way towards Seira at high speed.  
"Seira!" Luchia cried out as she raced to her. She shoved her out of the way as the claw caught its new target.  
"Luchia!" Seira gasped. Luchia tried breaking out of the robot's grip, but it was too strong.  
"What an excellent specimen. I'd wager that you will provide valuable data in my research." the robot said maliciously, "And soon, I'll reveal the truth about you mermaids to the world."  
"Kaito! Save me!" Luchia screamed out in agony, "KAITO!"

Not too far away, Hanon and Rina were leading Kaito to the North Pacific Palace. As they apporached, they spotted the giant robot standing next to the palace.  
"Wha-What is that?!" Hanon exclaimed.  
"is that supposed to be a machine?" Rina questioned. But Kaito recognized what it was. It was the same robot from his vision. As they got closer, the mermaids and Kaito saw two other mermaids in the midst of the action. The sight caused Kaito to gasp, for Luchia was one of the mermaids the robot caught, and Seira was trying to free her.  
"Luchia!" Kaito cried out. Then he sped off past Hanon and Rina to rescue Luchia.  
As he approached, Seira displayed much surprise to his arrival.  
"Kaito! What are you doing here?" Seira asked urgently. The question caught Luchia's attention, and she too spotted Kaito. But rather than answer, Kaito went to work trying to free Luchia.  
"Well what do we have here?" the robot inquired, "How can someone find such a place as this? Who are you boy?" Again, Kaito put his focus on the task at hand. But still, the claw refused to open.  
"Seira, go get Hippo." Luchia requested. understanding the order, Seira swam back to the palace. But both Kaito and Luchia feared it may be too late. For the claw began retracting back towards the mech's torso, towards a row of capsules. Frantic to prevent his vision from coming true, Kaito struggled even more to free Luchia.  
"I've had just about enough of you boy." the robot furiously spoke, "Begone!" And it swung another claw to swat Kaito towards the palace.  
"KAITO!" Luchia cried out. And her feelings caused her pearl to radiate a strong glow, which shattered the robot's claw. the effort caught the robot off-guard and in surprise. But once free, Luchia joined Hanon and Rina a little bit out of its reach.  
"Luchia, are you okay?" Hanon inquired. But Luchia wasn't thinking of herself right now. instead, she felt enraged that the robot would hurt Kaito.  
Still, she kept calm and replied, "I'm fine. Let's do it. Hanon, Rina." Both mermaids agreed, and the transformation began.

To use their songs against foes, the mermaid princesses underwent a transformation into their Pichi Pichi forms. With it, their pearls also transformed into special mics they used to strengthen their singing. When the mermaids transform, they do gain legs. However, much of their appearance is the same as their mermaid forms.  
So now, the mermaid's pendants opened and enabled their pearls to transform into microphones.  
"Pink Pearl Voice!" Luchia gained lacy-pink gloves, boots, and a small dress.  
"Agua pearl Voice!" Hanon's costume looked a lot like Luchia's, but was aquamarine in color.  
"Green Pearl Voice!" Rina's outfit, however, was different. She wore long gloves that almost reached her shoulders and were green in color, and she had on a long dress of the same color.  
This was the Mermaid Princesses Pichi Pichi forms.

Once the transformation was complete, the thee figures stood inside their Live Stage, a glowing orb that housed their power, ready to be sung. Then, a strong tune began to play in the area.

"Alright! Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!" the three proclaimed.  
And they began to sing a most notable song: "Legend of Mermaid."

 ** _Nanairo no kaze fukarete_**  
 ** _tooi misaki wo mezashiteta_**

 ** _Yoake mae kikoeta MERODII_**  
 ** _Sore wa totemo natsukashii uta_**

 ** _Hisashi no sora he to habutaku toritachi_**  
 ** _Saa takarajima ni nukera chikamichi_**

 ** _Nanatsu no umi no rakuen_**  
 ** _Arasho no yoru no ato ni wa tsutaeru_**  
 ** _tame inochi ga mat umareru_**

 ** _Nanatsu no kumi no MERODIA_**  
 ** _Darerno ga itsuka wa koko wo_**  
 ** _Tabidatsu hi ga kitemo_**  
 ** _Watashi wa wasurenai_**

As the three sung, cracks began to develop on the mechs arms and the capsules in its chest. So many crack appeared that the machine neared breaking.  
Once the mermaids were done singing, they called out, "Love Shower Pitch!" And the arms and capsules finally shattered. "How about an encore?" the three asked their sole audience member.

"I must admit, I am surprised by your power." was what it said in reply, "But I've got a trick or two up my sleeve too." One last claw shot out at the three, threatening to capture them in one fell swoop. But then, a hippocampus charged into the claw, and shattered it with his power.  
"Are you alright? Luchia-san? Hanon-san? Rina-san?" Hippo inquired of the mermaid princesses.  
"Hippo! We're alright." Luchia answered.  
"Great timing, Hippo." Rina thanked. But the celebration had to be cut short. For just then, a larger claw dropped down and clung to the severely damaged machine.  
"You've won this round." the robot threatened, "But I will return, and bring you into view with the world. Then your power, and fame, will be mine." And it was quickly lifted away, leaving everyone to wonder what would happen now.

"Kaito. Kaito!" came Luchia's voice, though somewhat distant. Finally regaining consciousness, Kaito awoke to her calling him. And he was glad to discover it was not a trick of his mind. Luchia, now in mermaid form, floated over him with a worried expression that quickly changed to relief as he awoke. Then he remembered, and immediately bolted upright.  
"The machine! it didn't-" he recalled frantically. But Luchia shook her head and told him, "It's gone. It didn't take anyone." With that, Kaito let out a sigh of relief. He intervened just in time. As Luchia helped him up, Hanon and Rina arrived with Seira and Hippo (penguin).  
"Phew! We were lucky." Hanon sighed.  
"Yeah. Who knows what would have happened if you didn't have that vision Kaito." Rina added.  
"Vision?" Luchia quizzed.  
"The reason we rushed here was because i had a vision of you being captured by that robot." Kaito admitted sheepishly.  
"At first, Rina and I didn't believe him." Hanon inputted, "But he was so dedicated to preventing it that we decided to bring him here. And it was a good thing too, considering you acted rather rashly." That last sentence was spoken to tease Luchia.  
"Hanon!" Luchia grumbled.  
But that matter was left hanging when Rina brought up, "But now that we know that that robot knows where this place is, it's no longer safe to stay. And if we go to any of the other kingdoms, we'll only be putting them in danger too." Everyone pondered this for a moment, troubled by the fact that they were no longer safe at home anymore.  
And much to everyone's surprise, Seira broke the mood by suggesting, "Well, if we can't stay hidden in the sea, why don't we hide on land? No one would think to look for us there." Hippo was about to protest, but Hanon kept his beak shut as she agreed to the suggestion. Pretty soon, everyone agreed that hiding on land was a better method with that robot around. And after winning Hippo over to their side, and after many farewells, the gang swam for the surface.

 **And here we have the first chapter of Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo. And boy does it start off with a very foreboding feeling. A machine attacking the mermaids? A human? That's new. But what's his angle? Stay tuned to find out. Follow and review.**


	2. Sick Spell

**Howdy do, strangers! Here's chapter 2 of Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo. I want to give fair warning right in this chapter: Most of the chapters may or may not have lyrics for the songs the mermaids sing. This is one of those chapters. In the case of this, I will instead sorta describe the song and the lyrics sung.**

 **With that anyway, I hope you enjoy chapter 2 of MMPPD.**

 ***I do not own Mermaid Melody. All rights to appropriate owners.**

Chapter 2: Sick Spell

A couple days later, Hanon and Rina waited in the dining area of Pearl Piari for Luchia so that they could go to school. Hanon wore the girl's outfit: a white, short-sleeved shirt with a sailor's cape, and a red skirt. Rina, however, wore the boy's uniform (though why she still does remains a mystery): A white, long-sleeved, collared shirt and blue pants. Hanon sighed in a bored fashion, sounding rather exasperated.  
"Hey Luchia, hurry up. We're going to be late." Rina urged.  
"In a minute." Luchia called back. Immediately following, Seira came downstairs very energetically, also dressed for school. Because she was still technically younger than the other girls, she would be attending the same school as Luchia and the others, but with the first year students. Along with Seira's arrival, Hippo hopped onto the table to discuss matters with the three mermaid princesses. But then, he also noticed that Luchia wasn't with them yet.  
"What's taking Luchia-san so long?" he wondered in agitation, "She must not fall in love with that Kaito-boy."  
"But Kaito isn't really all human." Hanon brought up, "Part of him is Panterrassa."  
"That just makes it even more inconceivable." Hippo retorted.  
"But isn't it okay to at least love someone, no matter who they are?" Seira asked.  
"Absolutely not!" Hippo chastised the young girl, "If you mermaid princesses fall in love, you'll start thinking funny. And when you start thinking funny, you might confess your as a mermaid. And when you reveal that you are a mermaid, you turn into bubbles!" Sadly, that was true. The way the stories went was that if a mermaid revealed who they were to a human, they would turn into bubbles. The exception with Luchia was that Kaito discovered her identity, she never revealed it. But it still gave Hippo a headache to consider her being with him.  
Not too long after, the group spotted Lucia coming down the stairs. Strangely though, her steps were shaky and caused her to lose her balance every now and then.  
But once she reached the bottom, Luchia greeted, "Good morning. Shall we go?"  
"Luchia, are you alright?" Hanon inquired of her shaky friend.  
"I'm fine. We have to hurry to school, or we'll be late." Though dubious about her answer, the three girls followed along.

Kaito strolled to the front gate, not entirely anxious for another school day to start. When he had the vision of Luchia being captured, it completely unnerved him. What would happen if ha had another dream during class? Was he really going to be able to handle what it would cause? But he decided to forget about it. For the time being, he would have to live his life as normally as he could.  
And that's when he spotted Luchia and the others.  
"Hey, Luchia." he called out to her.  
Luchia turned to see him, and returned, "Hi Kaito." But suddenly, she started swaying and Hanon had to catch her. The movement created concern inside Katio. Luchia assured her friends she was fine, and continued to school. Kaito, on the other hand, could tell that something was wrong. And he didn't like it one bit.

But Kaito never got the chance to confront Luhia on the matter. Once in the classroom, the teacher began their lesson. Katio kept half his attention on the lesson, and the other half on Luchia. She didn't look right to him. Normally, Luchia wa very peppy and upbeat, and then somewhat of a nervous wreck around him. But today, she seemed sloppy and uncoordinated, a characteristic that wasn't her.  
Then the teacher called up Luchia to complete something for the lesson on the board. But as Luchia got up, she started swaying and swooning as she stepped to the front of the room. Before she reached it, she fell forward and collapsed. The classroom became abuzz with shock. Kaito rushed to her side, flanked by Hanon and Rina. Kaito checked her forehead to read her temperature, and found it to be dangerously hot. Luchia was running a fever!

Kaito, Hanon, and Rina helped the teacher take Luchia to the nurse's office. After school, they returned to see how she was doing. Sadly, they were informed that she was very ill, but it was not known what the cause was. So the nurse called Nikora (who pretended to be Luchia's older sister while on land) to come pick her up.  
After Nikora dropped Luchia off in her room, Hanon and Rina arrived after picking up Seira.  
"How is Luchia?" Hanon asked Nikora.  
With a heavy sigh, Nikora answered, "She's still very sick. Hippo is watching her now." This made the three girls very worried. Luchia becoming sick wasn't all that scary, but this type of sickness was different.  
"How could Luchia become so sick all of a sudden?" Seira pondered worriedly.  
"How indeed." came Taki, the hotels fortune teller. Her sudden appearance scared the lights out of the group.  
"T-Taki-san!" Rina exclaimed, "What are you saying?"  
The elder gazed into her crystal ball that she carried, humming intensely. "A sudden illness has taken hold in Luchia." she prophesied, "A trial unlike any other. The cost great should she fail." Now normally, Taki's fortunes were never really accurate. More often than not, all she said was simply to scare everyone. But this time, dubious or not, everyone grew concerned by this.  
"W-What cost, Taki-san?!" Hanon wigged out.  
"Should she fail," Taki answered, "Luchia may never wake again." If the panic in the room wasn't evident before, it was now.

Later that afternoon, Kaito stopped by Pearl Piari to see how Luchia was doing. He knew her fever wasn't a normal one, and that it somehow connected to her mermaid side. If that was the case, he had to do something to help her.  
Once he rang the doorbell, Hanon answered the door and allowed him to come inside. As Kaito did, Taki appeared in front of him unexpectedly.  
"A strange tide has come in." she muttered. Her sudden appearance freaked Kaito out.  
"Wh-Who are you?!" Kaito exclaimed. He had never met Taki before, and was completely unsettled by her behavior.  
"That's Taki-san, our fortune teller." Hanon introduced as she led Kaito away.  
"Fortune teller?" Kaito asked skeptically.  
"Yeah. But don't mind her. Let's go and see Luchia." And the two headed up for the room.  
While Taki stared at where they left, she mumbled, "A strange tide. But is it good, or bad?"

Just outside Luchia's room stood Hanon and Kaito. Kaito wasn't sure what he could do to help. Was coming here a mistake?  
It didn't matter to Hanon, for she said, "Well, first visit is yours." And she pushed him in rather forcibly while shutting the door behind him.  
"Oy. Never get a chance to decide with her, do I?" he pondered afterward. But Kaito pushed past it and went to Luchia's bedside.  
Luchia was still the same as when Kaito last saw her. She laid in bed, asleep, panting as if she swam a marathon. She was sweating feverishly too. Just as Kaito sat down next to her, the bathroom door opened and Hippo came waddling out.  
When he spotted Kaito in the room, he demanded, "Wha-What are you doing here?! You're not supposed to be here! Luchia-san needs to be left alone!"  
But Kaito quickly quieted him down and replied, "I only came to check on her. Calm down." Hippo wasn't going to leave Kaito alone with Luchia. Still, he agreed to keep his voice down, but still gave Kaito the stink eye whenever he got the chance.  
After that, Kaito and Hippo worked together watching over Luchia. Hippo rechecked her temperature, while Kaito got a fresh wet cloth to cool down Luchia's forehead.  
As he laid the towel over her forehead, Luchia sudden;y squinted and whispered, "Kaito. Kaito." The action startled Kaito.  
But then Hippo told him, "She's been doing that for a while now. Luchia always mutters 'Kaito. Kaito.' every once in a while."  
"But why?" Kaito inquired.  
"Besides that she cares for you, I really don't know." As Kaito continued to observe, he saw that Luchia seemed almost in pain. Whatever illness-dream she was having seemed to have been torturing her. Figuring it would at least comfort her, Kaito slipped his hand into hers.  
When Hippo spotted this, he immediately tried to separate them, chastising, "No no no! This will not happen!" Kaito would've lost his grip, except that Luchia seemed to be grasping his hand in response to its presence. Before long, Hippo gave up and just pouted in the corner, muttering about how irresponsible Luchia was behaving, even while asleep.  
But Kaito began to notice something about Luchia. Her expression was calmer than earlier, and she was breathing normally. She still whispered Kaito's name after every other breath, but she seemed to be better than before. It filled Kaito with a sense of wonder, that Luchia was doing better when he held her hand. Was there something about this illness that linked to him?  
Just then, the door burst open, pancaking Hippo behind. In the doorway stood an elderly man with a crop of white hair, wearing a lab coat and a stethoscope, and carrying s small doctor's handbag.  
"Excuse me." the doctor greeted when he spotted Kaito, "But is the patient, Luchia Nanami, residing here?"  
"Uh, yeah. This is her." Kaito answered, startled by the sudden intrusion, "Are you here to look at her illness?"  
"Why yes, my good sir." replied the doctor flamboyantly, "I was called by the hotel manager to check on the miss."  
"Oh. Well, okay." Kaito got up to leave, slipping his hand out of Luchia's. In that moment, Luchia began to wince and shiver without reason.  
"This looks serious." the man observed, "You'd best to leave me to tend to her alone for the time being."And he ushered Kaito out the door, and shut him out.

Facing no alternatives, Kaito decided to wait in the lobby with the others. As he came down the steps, he spotted Nikora, Hanon, and Rina trying to comfort Seira, who looked shaken. When Hanon and Rina saw him come down, they confronted him with concern.  
"Kaito, did a doctor go up to see Luchia?" Hanon interrogated.  
"Yeah, just now." Kaito responded, "He said that it was something he needed to check alone. But, did you guys call him here?" Hanon's question coupled with Seira's behavior told him that something wasn't right. And when the girls shook their heads no, he became convinced.  
"That man just barged in and was scaring Seira with one of his needles." Rina explained, "We were lucky Nikora-san intervened when she did." A sudden agreement came across everyone in the room, and the two girls and Kaito rushed up the steps to Luchia's room.

When they reached the door, they found it to be locked.  
"My progress cannot be interrupted." the man said from inside, "Please wait a while longer."  
"Let us in!" Kaito yelled through the door, "Hippo, open the door! Luchia! LUCHIA!" Then Kaito and Rina tackled the door, attempting to knock it down. With each attempt, Kaito thrusted his whole body into the effort. But the three continued to worry with each passing second. Whoever was in there obviously meant to do something to Luchia while she was incapacitated. And with Hippo not responding, that made it even more urgent for them to get inside.  
After several attempts, they managed to bust open the door. They saw that the doctor was prepping a needle, but it was empty. Without another thought, Kaito charged the man and swatted the needle away.  
Then he gripped the man's coat and interrogated, "Who are you?! And what were you doing with Luchia?!"  
"Please young man, the patient cannot take anymore trauma right now." the man warned.  
"Answer me!" Kaito growled. He seethed with anger at the stranger's intrusion. He had meant to harm Luchia without his or the others knowing. There was no way Kaito would let him get away with this.  
But then, Luchia spoke out, "Kaito." When he looked to her, he saw that she was awake. immediately, Kaito calmed down, releasing the man and setting himself next to her.  
"Are you alright?" he asked.  
With a nod, Luchia replied, "I'm a little better." And she and Kaito held hands.  
While the faux doctor made his way to the door, Hanon and Rina barred his way and interrogated, "Who really sent you? In the past, the mermaid princesses had to deal with sea demons in disguise. So they figured that this man could be one.  
So the doctor answered, "The new founder of the mermaids." And he charged between the girls, slipping by, and escaaped out of the hotel.  
"Hanon, let's go!" Rina suggested. And they took off after him.

The doctor fled, hoping to get away before the residents could call the authorities. He had thought he had gotten away, until two girls in flashy outfits impeded his progress. The Mermaid Princesses.  
"Trying to harm an innocent girl is unforgivable." Rina spoke.  
"Hope you're ready." Hanon warned.

"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!"

And the two began to sing their song, "Azure Love." A song of their love for the great blue sea, and how it translated to those closest to them. The two sung, hoping to do something to the man. But he was completely unfazed. A water demon would be unable to bear the power of the Mermaid Princess's song. But the man wasn't, and the two took notice.  
"You're not affected?" Hanon quizzed.  
"Of course. I'm not a water demon like what you're used to." the man responded, "So your songs cannot affect me. However, you have made it easy for me to capture you, Mermaid Princesses." Then he hit a switch in his bag, and a robot much like the one that attacked Luchia's home rose from the sea and stormed up the beach. This didn't look well for Hanon and Rina. Without Luchia, their power wasn't as strong as it normally would be.  
"And now, to claim the property of me, Dr. Hishki!" but the guy never got to launch the attack, because Luchia came up to the scene with Kaito.  
"Pink Pearl Voice!" And however sick she was, Luchia went over, transformed, to join her friends. Kaito remained hidden behind the doctor's sight.  
The two other Mermaid Princesses were surprised by Luchia's arrival, but she told them, "Let's do this! Hanon! Rina!"  
The three friends then initiated their second transformation. With it, their costumes began to change. Rina's dress gained a double skirt, Luchia's outfit grew slightly longer with more frills, Hanon's lengthened too and had an aqua bow. Luchia's and Hanon's boots grew in height and their gloves grew larger, Rina's heels raised higher, And Rina and Luchia gained headdresses. Their second form.

Once they finished transforming, they readied their next song for the doctor.  
"Alright! Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!" The song this time was an "Perfect Harmony", talking about how, even though they felt like they were about to lose, they would keep going. That they would become better, sing higher, and sing for their love with Perfect Harmony.  
The song once again caused the machine to crumble and crack. This time, though, it was the entire thing that was reaching the breaking point.  
Once the Mermaid Princesses were finished with their song, they called out, "Love Shower Pitch!" And the mech shattered. "How about an encore?"  
"Grr! You managed to win this time." Dr. Hishki roared, "But you all will be mine soon enough. Make no mistake." Then a small sub surfaced in the waters, and the doc made his getaway. Kaito and the girls would have gone after him, but then Luchia fell to her knees from exhaustion. So they let him get away.

After the three got Luchia back to her room to rest, Hanon, Rina, and Kaito gathered around her bed to discuss what had just happened.  
"That man, Dr. Hishki," Rina pondered, "he seems intent on capturing us."  
"But why does he? What does he want with us?" Hanon moaned. No one had an idea as to what he did want.  
No one, except, "I think I know." Luchia spoke, "When that man first attacked the North Pacific Palace, he said he was going to reveal us to the world once he caught us."  
"Reveal you?" Kaito questioned. But the fear soon kicked in. If Dr. Hishki revealed Luchia and the others to the world that they were mermaids, then they would disappear. This was probably he worst scenario the group found themselves in.  
"But shouldn't this doctor guy know what will happen if he reveals our identities?!" Hanon posed the question.  
Rina pondered this, then answered, "I believe he doesn't know. He may not even be aware of the consequences."  
"Either way, we must be careful." Kaito advised, "We cannot let that man catch any of you." Everyone agreed to this, and Hanon and Rina left the room. Kaito stayed with Luchia as she fell back to sleep, now with a new reason to protect her.

A few days later, Luchia recovered from her illness and was back to her normal self. She was in a chipper mood as she walked with her friends to school. Though the same couldn't be said for Kaito. When Luchia met up with him at the school gates, Kaito's face looked red. And not from embarrassment.  
"Looks like your sick spell fell on me." Kaito joked.  
"Aw Kaito, you got sick right when I got better!" Luchia complained, but then added, "Don't worry. I'll be sure to come by your house and care for you until you are all better." Kaito remembered the fiasco last time Luchia took care of him. And he wasn't looking for a repeat of that incident.  
"Uh, no thanks Luchia." he replied, "Besides, I'm not that sick."  
"Kaito." But then Kaito ran off for class, chased by Luchia, while Hanon and Rina laughed at the scene playing out.

 **Heehee. Being sick ain't fun, right? Whelp, it nearly gave Dr. Hishki a chance to do something with Luchia. But, how did he know or even suspect Luchia was a mermaid? Weird.**

 **Stay tuned for more chapters.**


	3. Aquamarine Heart

**Hi guys, we're back. And I have a little announcement to make. Nothing bad, just for future information.**

 **For this story, I'm gonna alternate posting it with another story after this week. I'll still be posting, just trying to keep a more stable schedule so I don't leave you hanging at any point in the story when I take longer than expected to post. I hope you all can still enjoy Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo regardless.**

 **So, this chapter is gonna be focused on Hanon and Nagisa. And we'll be seeing the return of a familiar face here too. Wonder who it is?**

 **Let's find out.**

In a secret lab somewhere in the ocean, the scientist, Dr. Hishki, stood staring at a peculiar slab of stone.  
"Twice I have been forced to retreat at my time of victory." he muttered, "And all by their singing. It seems to me that I have underestimated their power." As he placed the stone on the machine, he continued, "Machines won't accomplish my task. Not yet. So until they do, I'll use this fossil to bring help. To gather all the data I need to capture the mermaid princesses once and for all."  
As the machine operated, three figures began to materialize in three tubes behind the doctor.  
"So now, I must fight fire with inferno!"

Meanwhile, in the ocean waters near Japan, Hanon was enjoying a nice, relaxing swim in the open seas. Taking a bath at Pearl Piari was nice, but nothing beats swimming in the ocean. As Hanon surfaced, she gazed at the majestic sight of the full moon.  
"Such a pretty night." she said to herself. But then, a strange feeling of sorrow fell over her. And she realized why.  
Even though Hanon loved Nagisa now, she still remembered her first love: Tarou Mitsuki. A music teacher at one time, Hanon tried to win a place in his heart so that Mitsuki-sensei would love her too, despite that he was older than her. But Tarou loved another mermaid instead, Sara, and just could not return Hanon's feelings. It took a while for Hanon's feelings to adjust, but she soon began loving Nagisa after spending some time with him.  
After that had settled down, Hanon decided to call it a night, and returned home.

The afternoon of the next day, Hanon sat on the beach, gazing out to sea, contemplating. It was then that a surprise visitor showed up.  
"Hanon-sama!" somebody called out. Startled by the call, Hanon looked around for who had called out to her. But she wasn't able to find them, until a young girl popped up from below the waves. Correction: a young, aqua mermaid.  
"Hi, Hanon-sama." Meru greeted.  
"Eh?!" Hanon exclaimed, "M-Meru? What are you doing here?"  
"I came by to see you, Hanon-sama." Meru replied, "And the new Orange Pearl Mermaid Princess."

Meru was a mermaid from Hanon's kingdom in the South Atlantic Ocean. She had only been to Japan two times before. First was when she was looking for her mother after the kingdom fell. The second was when she came back to try and win Kaito's affection away from Luchia. Still, it surprised Hanon that she would return, especially at a time like this.

After their initial meeting, Hanon took Meru to Pear Piari to see everyone.  
"Hi, Meru." Luchia greeted first.  
"I's been awhile." Rina added.  
"Hello, Luchia-sama, Rina-sama." Meru returned, "It's great to see everyone again." Hanon explained to them the reason Meru came by for a visit. And before anyone could begin speaking, Meru spotted Seira coming downstairs.  
"Ah, Seira-sama!" she exclaimed, "I'm Meru, from Hanon-sama's kingdom. It's so great to finally meet you."  
"Um, hi Meru." Seira replied awkwardly.  
"Wow! You look like we could be the same age. That's so cool!"  
"Seems Meru hasn't changed much." Rina observed with her friends.  
"Yep. That's Meru." Luchia agreed.  
Then, the doorbell rang. When Hanon went to answer it, she found a boy with dark-blue hair waiting for her.  
With a smirk, Nagisa asked, "You ready to go, Hanon?" Hanon nodded, and let everyone know that she was leaving, then headed out with Nagisa on his two-seat bicycle.  
"Aw!" Meru moaned, "But I had to tell Hanon-sama something. And it was important too."  
"What was important?" Luchia asked her curiously.

Whenever Nagisa asked Hanon out on a date, the two would ride around town on Nagisa's tandem bicycle. Even though Hanon had never ridden a bike before hanging out with Nagisa, she had been learning from him. But still, she left most of the work to him.  
Nagisa continued to pedal him and Hanon along the coast. Where to, Hanon was still unsure of. Nagisa never had any particular destination in mind when he went with her on any of their dates.  
Eventually, Hanon got tired of not knowing and demanded, "Nagisa! Where are you taking us this time?!"  
"You'll see." was his only response back. So Hanon bore with the unknown.  
After a bit more riding, Nagisa stopped by an ice cream stand. The two ordered their favorites, then went and sat on the beach as they enjoyed their treats.  
But Hanon had barely eaten her ice cream when Nagisa asked, "Hey Hanon, what do you think about the ocean?"  
"Eh? What's with that? Why would you ask me something so random?" Hanon responded.  
"It's just... I see you and your friends sometimes staring off into the horizon, almost like you miss something." Hanon was a little startled that Nagisa would ask her something like this out of the blue. Still, she figured it wouldn't hurt to talk a little bit about her home.  
"I just try to remember about places out there, and looking out to sea helps me." Hanon finally elaborated, "I look out to the horizon and try to remember what they were like when I was there." Hanon let that sit as she continued to eat her ice cream.  
Once she was done, Nagisa asked, "Do you want to go swimming?" Apparently, he had worn his swim trunks today.  
"Huh? Right now?!" Hanon quizzed worriedly.  
"Well yeah. The waves are nice, and the current shouldn't be too rough. Let's go for it!" Hanon immediately tried to think of an excuse to get out of swimming. If she transformed in front of Nagisa, not only would he discover her secret of being a mermaid, but she would turn to bubbles almost instantly upon entering the ocean. She could almost imagine the scene playing out exactly like that.  
The she came upon an idea. She began quivering with a grim expression on her face.  
Nagisa took notice to the change and asked, "Hanon? What's wrong?"  
"Well, actually, I'm very afraid of the water." she fibbed, "I've heard all those stories about monsters living in the ocean, and I'm just too scared to go in."  
"Huh? But you're always gazing out to sea. How can you be scared now?" he questioned.  
"Looking out to sea I'm okay with." Hanon explained, "Actually going in is what scares me."  
"C'mon. We won't go too far in."  
"Nagisa, I told you no!"  
"You're so stubborn!"  
"And you're so dense!"  
In anger, the two turned their backs to each other. But, Hanon's expression softened, as did Nagisa's. Hanon still loved Nagisa and couldn't stay mad with him, and him with her. So Nagisa suggested that they go back, as the sun was hanging low in the sky.

As they pedaled back to Pearl Piari, Nagisa spoke up, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have assumed you'd want to go swimming."  
But Hanon shook her head and replied, "No, I'm the one who should be sorry. I yelled at you when you were just asking nicely."  
"But I'm the one who pushed you to do so."  
"Are we really going to argue over apologies?" And with that, the two laughed off the event like it was no big deal.  
"Oh yeah!" Nagisa perked up, "I managed to get some concert tickets for this weekend. Want to go?" Hanon immediately agreed, and thanked Nagisa for the offer. Then they rode on, their thoughts on each other.

But when they got back to the hotel, everything in Hanon's world fell apart.  
Because as they walked in, all cheerful and giddy, Meru immediately vaulted in Hanon's way and criticized, "Hanon-sama! What were you doing going out with this strange boy?!"  
"It's okay." Hanon assured, "This is Nagisa. Nagisa, this is Meru, my... cousin."  
Nagisa was about to return greetings with Meru when she scolded, "Hanon-sama, what are you doing flirting with another boy? You're needed back home right now!"  
"N-Now?" Hanon quizzed, "Couldn't we maybe go back home a little later?"  
"NO Hanon-sama. Everyone is expecting you to return home now!"  
This was becoming quite a pickle. Hanon knew she had responsibilities to her people as the Aquamarine Pearl Mermaid Princess, but part of her wanted to stay on land with Nagisa. Her feelings between her two sides were beginning to tear inside herself.  
Nagisa was just as shocked as Hanon was.  
"Hanon, what about the concert this weekend?" he inquired, "Can you make it back for that?"  
"I think so." Hanon replied.  
"No Hanon-sama. You won't be able to come back this time. You need to return home." Meru refuted.  
"What are you talking about?!" Nagisa argued with Meru, "Of course Hanon can come back! It's her choice."  
"But it is not her responsibility."  
"And who says you can decide what she can and cannot do?"  
"Well who says that you can?"  
"Take a hint. Hanon does not want to go back."  
"Hanon does want to go back. And she will."  
"STOP!" Hanon screamed. Nagisa's and Meru's arguing was tearing her apart. Everything inside her was shattered: her head, her feelings, her love. It all caused Hanon to cry uncontrollably. With so much grief welling up inside, Hanon ran out the door sobbing.

"Nice one Meru." Nagisa blamed, "You just had to go and upset Hanon."  
"Me?! You were the one yelling in her face!" Meru retorted.  
"You wanted to force her to go back home."  
"And you wanted to force her to stay and go to some concert."  
"ENOUGH!" Nikora interrupted, "IS THIS THE WAY TO BEHAVE IN FRONT OF YOUR FRIENDS?!" her arrival caused both Nagisa and Meru to clam up.  
With a huge sigh, Nikora suggested, "Instead of arguing, shouldn't you be out there looking for her?" Immediately, the two took off to look for Hanon.

Before they had taken off, Hanon had run straight into the ocean. She felt completely betrayed, both by Meru and Nagisa. How could they have not considered her own thoughts and feelings? She knew her responsibilities as a Mermaid Princess, and she was intent on going to the concert with Nagisa. But how could they argue over that?  
 _'It's not fair!'_ Hanon cried, _'It's just not fair!'_  
But as she was swimming away, she encountered a sudden swarm of bats all clustering together.  
 _'Bats? Underwater?'_ Hanon pondered. But then she realized who it could be. There was only one water demon who controlled bats and could exist underwater like her.  
As the bats formed the figure, a sinister voice chuckled, "What do we have here? A Mermaid Princess in tears?" then the figure finally formed. A woman with ebony-black hair and ebony-black boots and pants. A white buccaneer shirt, bat wings behind her, and a mask around her night-sky eyes.  
"Lady Bat!" Hanon gasped.  
"Surprised to see me, Mermaid Princess?" Lady Bat taunted, "I've been reborn. And now I'm going to use this chance to capture you and the other mermaid princesses. Get ready!" Then Lady Bat discarded her mask, as a dark tune began.  
Her song, "Alluring Darkness," played out. Her song of swaying unsuspecting victims to submit, and let the darkness surround and consume them, to slumber in it for all eternity.  
Hanon tried to cover her ears to block out the song, but its power broke through her efforts and drew her into a daze. But before it completely overpowered her, Hanon cried out, "Nagisa, help me!"

On land, Nagisa had split up with Meru and ran along the edge of town. He called out to Hanon, hoping to find her soon and make up for what occurred back at the hotel. But he was having no luck.  
Until he heard, "Nagisa, help me!" It was Hanon, Nagisa knew. Calling out from... the ocean?  
"Hanon, can you hear me?!" Nagisa called out to her. No response came back. But Nagisa was sure that her voice came from the ocean. But how could she be there?  
As Nagisa ran out onto the beach, he was startled when a girl popped out from under the water not too far from shore. She startled Nagisa, and shocked him even more when he saw her tail.  
"A mermaid?" he gasped.  
"Please, Nagisa, we don't have much time." Meru urged, "My princess is in danger, and I need your help to save her."  
"Wait, how do you know my name?"  
"I told you, we don't have a lot of time. Follow me, quickly!" Without argument, Nagisa jumped into the water and dove after the mermaid (Note: Nagisa doesn't know that she is Meru).  
Meru led Nagisa a good deal away from the land. But before long, they spotted two figures up ahead. One was a mermaid with long, blue hair and an aquamarine tail. The other figure looked like a person with bat wings, fangs, and a sneer that made Nagisa cringe. The mermaid was in a hypnotic state, at the whim of the bat-wing person.  
"That was far too easy." the bat lady jeered, "But soon, we will capture you all." Nagisa didn't understand it, but he had a sudden need to protect the blue mermaid. Spurring out, Nagisa charged at the bat lady and delivered a punch to her face. When she came too, Hanon was surprised, yet elated, to find Nagisa rescuing her. But Nagisa was running out of air, and he motioned up to signal Hanon. Understanding what she was told, Hanon swam to the surface with Nagisa and Meru in tow.

When they resurfaced, Hanon told Nagisa, "Thank you Nagisa." Nagisa was a little startled that this mermaid knew his name too. But at the same time, it almost seemed like he knew her.  
In reply, Nagisa said, "Your welcome. But, who are you?" The question surprised Hanon. What could she say? If she revealed herself, she would disappear and turn into bubbles. But still, her feelings for Nagisa were pressing hard inside her chest.  
She was about to answer his question when Nagisa suddenly slipped back under.  
"Nagisa!" Hanon cried out. She dove after him, followed by Meru. As she dove, she saw that Lady Bat was dragging him down, keeping him from surfacing.  
"Insolent boy!" She growled, "I'll teach you to lay even a finger on me." Nagisa hadn't taken a breath when he got pulled under, and was frantically swimming upwards for air. Even as he saw Hanon swim for him, he continued to panic. Eventually, he passed out. And Lady Bat let him go once he did.  
As Hanon caught up to Nagisa, she felt like her heart had stopped. But that matter had to be set aside.  
So she requested, "Meru, take Nagisa back to land and wait for me."  
"Yes, Hanon-sama." Meru affirmed the command, and took Nagisa. However she could, Hanon had to beat Lady Bat.  
"Now then, Mermaid Princess, shall we resume where we left off?" she taunted. But then, Hanon heard Luchia call out to her. And before long, Luchia and Rina were by her side. they too were surprised to see Lady Bat again after all that had happened. But the water demon could not believe her luck having three Mermaid Princesses showing up for her to capture. But, it wasn't going to happen this time.

So the Mermaid Princesses began their transformations.  
 _ **"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"**_  
Once their first transformation was complete, the three transformed again into their second form.  
"Lady Bat," Hanon proclaimed, "This time you will pay for harming Nagisa."  
"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!"  
This time, the song they sung was "Starlight." A song of how light, when gathered, would radiate through depth and darkness. That it would spread and be shared by the trio's song of love. Unable to bear the melody, Lady Bat gripped her head as if the song were giving her a headache.  
"Love Shower Pitch! How about an encore?"  
"Blast!" she seethed, "I'll get you next time!" And she disappeared in a swarm of bats.

After that, Hanon went to where Meru took Nagisa to check up on him. Meru dove back into the sea as Hanon arrived, giving her time to be alone with him. Hanon didn't change back into her human form though, not yet.  
The sight of Nagisa unconscious bore into Hanon like a knife. He had gotten hurt trying to save her.  
"Nagisa." she whispered somberly. And, despite her sadness, she began to sing "Legend of Mermaid."

 ** _Nanairo no kaze fukarete  
tooi misaki wo mezashiteta_**

 ** _Yoake mae kikoeta MERODII  
Sore wa totemo natsukashii uta_**

And as Hanon sung, her pearl began to glow. It's light bathed Nagisa, feeding Hanon's power into him through her melody.  
Before Hanon reached the chorus, Nagisa interrupted her when he began to sputter. The boy soon came to, and spotted the mermaid right next to him.  
"You... You're real." he spoke.  
"Nagisa." Hanon replied, tears welling up in her eyes, "Nagisa!" She flung herself onto him, letting her tears flow. Nagisa was startled by the sudden action, but he decided to hug her back.  
When they finally separated, Hanon wiped her eyes and told him, "I was so worried. I thought I lost you."  
"Yeah, well it takes more than a little water to beat me." Nagisa boasted. Hanon just giggled at his showing off, then she gave him a kiss on the cheek. As she did, Nagisa felt a twinge of familiarity about this. Why was it so familiar? But then, Hanon leapt back into the ocean, leaving Nagisa in confusion.  
"Come find me." Hanon asked of him, "You will find me, for sure." And Nagisa was left to wonder about his mysterious rescuer.

Back at Pearl Piari, Hanon informed Meru that she wouldn't be return home just yet.  
"Huh?! but why, Hanon-sama?" Meru asked.  
"We're being hunted by a creepy scientist." Hanon explained, "So I can't come back, not yet. Besides, I don't want to leave Nagisa."  
"Well then, I guess you'll have to get used to me being around, because I'm moving in too." Meru announced. Hanon was shocked by this news.  
"I guess we'd better get used to our newcomer." Rina said.  
"Yep. It's going to be awfully busy now." Luchia added on.  
"Eh?! You guys, what about Seira?" Hanon tried to argue, "How can we help mentor her and keep an eye on Meru?"  
"Meru is your responsibility Hanon." Rina pointed out, "Just as Seira is Luchia's."  
"Finally, someone who can keep you in check." Hippo came in, "And keep you from falling in love with those human boys."  
"Ah Hippo, it's too late for that." Meru replied, "Besides, I couldn't even if I tried." And as Hippo was trying to comprehend this change in circumstances, Hanon just giggled.  
 _'Who knows.'_ she thought, _'Maybe having Meru around might not be so bad. And maybe, one day, Nagisa will discover who I am, just like Kaito discovered Luchia.'_

 **Dun-da-da-daaa! Didn't expect to see Meru back, did you? And Lady Bat makes a combat too, thanks to a certain scientist who has a thing against the mermaid princesses. And finally, Nagisa gets to see Hanon in her mermaid form! Haha!**

 **Whelp, there you go. Stay tuned for more.**

 **Till then,**

 **Encore wa ika ga?**


	4. A Hardened Resolve

**Hello again! I'll save my words for after the chapter. For now, enjoy.**

 **And, I do not own Mermaid Melody.**

The crowd roared as the boxing match began to get underway. Masahiro Hamasaki, a lean man with green hair and a fierce determination in his eyes, stared down his opponent as he circled the ring. The opponent threw a jab, he ducked with relative ease, and swooped as the man brought a hook to the left. Then Masahiro struck, landing a jab into his opponent's abdomen. Pressing his advantage, he then delivered another series of blows to the head, disorienting who he faced. The cycle continued a few times until the bell rang to signal the end of the round.  
As Masahiro's coach began to advise him on what to do for the next round, Masahiro spotted a familiar face in the crowd. A girl with long, green hair and piercing green eyes. The sight of Rina made Masahiro beam with excitement and hope. But then his coach caught on to his staring off into the crowd, and snapped him back into the ring just in time to start the second round. Once Masahiro met back up with his opponent, he thought back to his goal. _If I win,_ he thought with determination, _I can finally tell Rina that I love her._ And he struck.

After the fight, Masahiro was busy bandaging his injuries from his loss. As much as he was determined to win, he never really fought strictly for victory. It was something that carried him through, even when things didn't work out like he hoped. But as he was applying the last bandage to the bruise on his cheek, Rina came in suddenly and sat down next to him.  
"Heh. Kinda pathetic, aren't I?" Masahiro chuckled.  
"No" Rina replied, "Just stubborn."

The two motorcycled back to Pearl Piari shortly afterward. Rina still had a hard time coming to grips with her feelings for Masahiro. Before, she had devoted herself to not falling in love, so that she would be spared the pain of when she would have to return home and leave the land behind. But when Masahiro entered her life, that devotion was put to the test as her feelings betrayed her pledge. She still had not fully fallen for Masahiro, but little by little her feelings continued to develop. But at the end of the day, she would still struggle with why she liked Masahiro, despite her being a Mermaid Princess.

As the duo rode on, Masahiro piped up by asking, "So, what made you decide to see the match this time?"  
"My friends." Rina admitted, "They somehow discovered that you were fighting today, and convinced me to come. And I'm glad they did."  
"Good friends. Actually, I want to ask you something." As soon as Rina took notice to the forming question, he asked, "If you're free tomorrow, could you meet me by my raft?"  
"Uh, sure. But, why do you ask?"  
"I just want to spend some time with you." Neither of them knew it then, but when they got together they would be thrown for a loop.

When Masahiro dropped off Rina back at the hotel, she reaffirmed to him that she would see him tomorrow at the docks.  
After that, when she entered the lobby, Meru appeared almost all of a sudden and bombarded Rina with questions like, "Who was that guy Rina-sama? Is he your boyfriend? Does he know about your mermaid self like Kaito-kun knows Luchia-sama? Were you out on a date?"  
"Meru, please. It's not like that." Rina sheepishly replied.  
"Huh? But Hanon-sama said that you and he were going out together." Meru groaned, disappointed by the answer, "Are you sure he isn't your boyfriend? What's his name?" Instead of replying, Rina headed up the stairs to her room.  
But before she completely left, she told Meru, "Masahiro." And left it at that, while Meru struggled with the response she was given when returning to Luchia and Hanon, who were using the Mermaid Cards.

Rina turned off her TV after watching a comedy duo telling lame jokes again. She turned out the lights, and went to bed, while pondering what Masahiro had said to her before.  
 _What is it that he wants to do with me?_ she questioned. Masahiro was always making attempts to win Rina's affection. And it was a great risk for Rina to go out to sea with him too. Masahiro knew nothing of mermaids or water demons. The thought of Masahiro finding out about her secret haunted Rina. What would he think? Would he hate Rina if she was revealed to be a mermaid? Would he even be willing to cope with the knowledge of the underwater world? All these thoughts pressed on Rina's mind as she drifted off to sleep.

 _In her dream, Rina was underwater. She was in mermaid form, but had no idea what was going on, or what was about to happen. Then, Masahiro materialized next to her in a flurry of bubbles. She floated, aghast that he would be here in her dreams.  
"Rina, why didn't you tell me?" he questioned.  
"Masahiro, what do you mean?" she responded, startled by events.  
"Why did you lie to me? About who you really were?"  
"Masahiro, I can explain."  
"I thought that you cared for me. that you felt the same as me. I thought you loved me."  
"Masahiro, please!"  
"But I see it was all a lie. The only one you care about is yourself." With great pride, Masahiro began floating away from her.  
"Masahiro, wait!" Rina called out to him. But then, bubbles began floating from her body. And she began to realize that she was turning into bubbles. Her body wouldn't move, it felt anchored somehow. In anguish, Rina reached out to Masahiro's shrinking figure.  
"Masahiro! Masahiro!"_

"MASAHIRO!" Rina screamed. Then she realized that it was all a dream. Or rather, a nightmare in actuality. But not soon after she cried out in fright did Luchia and Hanon come into the room, concerned for their friend.  
"Rina, are you alright?" Luchia inquired.  
"You screamed so loud that you woke us both awake." Hanon explained, "Did something happen?" Rina knew she couldn't hide anything from her friends. So she decided to tell them about her conflictions.

Once Rina told her friends that she had a dream about Masahiro, Hanon immediately beamed, "Aw, you're so lucky. Dreaming about your love with Masahiro."  
"Hanon, it wasn't like that." Rina corrected, "He had found out about my secret, and believed I cared only about myself."  
"Huh? But that's not true Rina." Luchia argued, "You always care about us."  
"With you two, I do." Rina acknowledged, "But what about Masahiro?"  
"Well, obviously you like him. Don't you Rina?" Hanon pointed out, "So it stands to reason that you do not care only about yourself." Rina wasn't prone to admit it, but Hanon was right. Keeping her secret wasn't selfish. She cared for her friends, and even Masahiro. After thanking her friends for their their help, the three went back to bed.

Early next morning, Rina took a big stretch as she walked along the beach. As she stared out into the sunrise, she thought back to what Luchia and Hanon had told her last night. Maybe she wouldn't fall as deeply in love with Masahiro like those two had with their boyfriends, but she was in no way thinking only of herself. She reminded herself of that fact.  
It was then that she noticed Kaito surfing out on the waves. When he took notice of her on the beach, Kaito swam back in and rested next to her.  
"Hey, morning." he greeted cheerfully.  
"Oh, hi... Kaito." Rina stuttered in reply. Then she got up the nerves she could muster and asked, "Kaito, what was it like? When you found out Luchia was a mermaid, and the one from all those years ago, what did you feel?"  
"Huh? Where did this come from?" he inquired. But Rina's staring towards the horizon told him she was seeking an answer, and that was it.

So, in reply, Kaito told her, "Relieved. I never expected that the mermaid who saved me was Luchia all along. But, I had some suspicions for a while too. So when I found out who she really was, I was relieved to discover that who I sought had been next to me. And when I regained my memory, I felt somewhat guilty. I had caused all of you a lot of pain, especially Luchia. So I wanted to keep her safe, and make up for the hurt I had caused.  
"That's it?" Rina quizzed, "You never once feared what the truth would hold? Or disgusted to find that Luchia was the one you sought?"  
"Heh, no. Ever since I met her, I wanted to find her. Realizing that the mermaid I loved was the goofy girl who always stuck with me made it sort of... magical." The response stunned Rina. True, she had bared down on Kaito if he didn't treat Luchia properly. But still, she would have expected his personal feelings to speak otherwise.  
"I'm guessing this has something to do with a boy you like." Kaito said.  
Feeling flustered, Rina replied, "No! Absolutely not! That's not it! I was just curious was all."  
"Your face is turning red." Kaito laughed. And it was. Embarrassed, Rina stormed off for the docks, trying her best to not think on how Kaito was right.

Arriving at the dock, Rina found the boat they had used last time Masahiro took her onboard. And it wasn't long after she had arrived that Masahiro came by running.  
"Hey Rina, sorry I'm late." he greeted.  
With a small chuckle, Rina replied, "It's fine. I just got here too."  
"Well then, shall we?"  
Not a moment later did the two sail out a ways into the open ocean. Rina made perfectly sure that she sat towards the rear of the boat, in case something went wrong and she had to escape or something. Once Masahiro got them to a nice location, he set out a small picnic for him and Rina. It was almost hard for Rina not to enjoy herself. Masahiro never did anything flashy like Kaito and Nagisa, he just kept things rather normal. This was a characteristic of his that she liked, but at the same time struggled with.  
Setting down a half-eaten rice ball, Rina looked out to the ocean. _How can I live with this, knowing what will inevitably happen?_ Rina thought, _Why do I even try?_ In frustration with herself, Rina rammed her fist into the ground. Masahiro took notice of this, and saw that she was crying. Tears streaked down her face like streams.  
"Rina, what's wrong?" he inquired.  
Wiping away her tears, Rina put on a brave face and assured, "It's nothing. Sorry Masahiro, this is all really great. And I thank you for bringing me out here. But I don't know if this is right. To enjoy myself like this when it could all end so soon." Right then, Masahiro's biggest fear came crawling back into his mind.  
Masahiro had heard Rina say that she might leave someday. And that was his biggest worry. What if he never saw her again? Rina was the only girl he really felt connected to.  
"Rina," he finally spoke, "Remember when you said you wouldn't leave me?" Rina acknowledged his point. So Masahiro continued, "Don't give up hope. I'm sure, one way or another, that you won't have to leave. And I will keep you close to me." He placed a fist over his heart in a gesture to say he would guard his feelings for her. That Rina would be the only one there.  
But then, a splash interrupted the two as a fairy-looking child in green flew into the air. But like a dolphin flying into the air, she dove back underwater. It was strange, but Rina thought the girl looked somewhat familiar.  
"Arara." she heard Masahiro mutter. When she looked to him, Rina found that he was under some kind of hypnotic spell. Masahiro made his way to the back of the boat, and dove straight into the waters.  
"Masahiro!" Rina called out. But she wasn't sure what to do. What if she dove in, and Masahiro saw her transform? But she couldn't let that stop her. So Rina dove in after him.

Luckily, Masahiro was still dazed when Rina entered the water, so he never saw her transform. Unfortunately, he was swimming deeper towards a girl who looked like she could be a fairy.  
"Arara!" Rina called out.  
Arara quickly took notice to Rina's arrival, and giggled. "Well what do you know? It worked, just like he said it would." she smirked.  
"He?" Rina questioned. Then she shook off her confusion, and demanded, "Let Masahiro go!"  
"Uh uh uh. I think the boy can say otherwise." Arara teased.  
"Arara, I love you." Masahiro spoke dreamily. This angered Rina, since Arara had the power to put boys under a spell to make them love her.  
"But, we still can't have any competition for his interest." Arara spoke again, "So now, to begin the big finale." And just then, Arara brought out her Star Baton, and began to twirl it around playfully. As she did, she sung her song to defeat Rina. Her song, "Oh Yeah!," sorta described how much of a hyper lover she was. And that's putting it mildly.  
The song gave Rina a headache. Unable to bear the dark song's power, Rina cried out, "MASAHIRO!" And it did the trick. Suddenly, Masahiro snapped out of his daze and looked up to who called him. He didn't know that the mermaid with the green tail was Rina, but seeing her in pain told him that he needed to save her. Picking up Rina, Masahiro swam for the boat while Arara was distracted by her own singing.

Masahiro set Rina on the deck, her tail still somewhat submersed in water.  
"Who are you?" Masahiro asked the strange mermaid. But Rina never said who she was.  
Instead, she returned, "Aren't you scared of me?"  
"Should I be? Even to someone like you?" The words came to Rina so unexpectedly. She had often wondered what Masahiro's reaction would be if he saw her mermaid self.  
But the encounter drove her feelings haywire. Not wanting to prolong it, Rina tried diving back into the sea.  
"Wait!" Masahiro exclaimed. He grabbed hold of her wrist, stopping her from leaving. Rina tried to break the grip, but Masahiro held on.  
"Let go of me!" she demanded.  
"I won't. Not until I know who you are. I feel like... I feel like I should know you." Rina stopped struggling, and gave him a hard stare. The look she gave him caused Masahiro to ponder the thought of this person being the same as Rina.  
 _Why does this feel so familiar?_ he questioned, _Somehow, I know her. I just know it._ But Rina felt afraid. What would happen if he found out who she was? Could she live with what it would bring between herself and him?  
The encounter never fully developed, unfortunately, as Arara flew into the air nearby them.  
"Hmph! I would have thought any boy would have been unable to resist my gorgeous charm." she huffed, "But I see I'll have to do things the hard way." She pulled out what looked like a remote controller, and activated it. Instantly, a series of claws protruded from the water behind her. The machine parts clicked and snapped, targeting Rina for capture. But then, Masahiro put himself between the water demon and Rina.  
"Leave us alone! We have done nothing to anger you." he defended.  
"Oh I'm angry alright. But that's not the reason I'm here this time. My master wants me to capture the Mermaid Princess."  
 _So she's working for Dr. Hishki, just like Lady Bat._ Rina figured out.  
"Mermaid Princess?" Masahiro questioned.  
"Aw, you never knew. That mermaid is a Mermaid Princess. They're very dangerous to be around." Arara teased, "But give her over to me, and there won't be any problems for you."  
"No! I won't just surrender her to you. You'll just have to get through me first." Rina couldn't believe what she was hearing. Masahiro was actually defending her. Even though he didn't know who she was, he was still risking himself to protect her.  
"You know, you're beginning to annoy me. So I guess I have no choice but to go through you!" Arara commanded the mechanical arms to charge. Several knocked Masahiro back, and knocked him out, but failed to reach Rina.  
"MASAHIRO!" she cried out. she cradled Masahiro in her arms, praying he was alright.  
 _How could this have happened?_ she blamed on herself, _How could I have thought so badly of him?  
_ "Boy, that was a pain." Arara said exasperated. However, the effect the water demon had intended backfired.  
Rina set Masahiro down on the deck, and faced Arara with a steeled determination.  
"Arara," she spoke, "You will regret interfering with Masahiro and me." And on cue, Luchia and Hanon popped up next to the boat, ready to stand by her side. Their pearls had warned them that Rina had been in trouble earlier, which was why they came so quickly.  
"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"  
Once their second form was complete the three readied their song.  
"Attacking a human boy to get at us is unforgivable?" Hanon started out.  
"Now you must face our-" Luchia chimed in.  
"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!" Everyone proclaimed.  
The song they sung this time was a more percussion-based song at a quick tempo ( **A/N: Kizuhao, I believe is what it is called** ). They sung of how the darkness would press in, but they would not give in. That even with their backs to the wall, they would sing with all their hearts for the love they cherished. The song's power caused Arara to grimace and moan as she strained under its power.  
When they finished, they called out, "Love Shower Pitch! How about and encore?"  
"Why is it that you Mermaid Princesses have to ruin everything?!" Arara complained.

When Luchia and Hanon were caught up on what happened, they were a little worried for Rina and Masahiro.  
"But he does boxing anyway, so I'm sure he's fine." Hanon pointed out.  
"I hope so." Rina replied wistfully. She was back to being a human again, tending to Masahiro.  
"Well, we'd better go. Don't want Masahiro to freak out from seeing three mermaids in one day." Luchia suggested. Rina began to protest, but Luchia and Hanon had already ducked under the waves with a playful smile.  
As soon as they left, Masahiro woke up.  
"Rina, you're okay." he spoke after he spotted Rina.  
As she helped him up, Rina replied, "I'm glad you're okay. You had me worried." When Masahiro looked at Rina again, something seemed different. No longer did he just see a girl he really liked, but the image of the mermaid from before seemed to take place too. The two images seemed almost identical.  
 _It's not possible. Is it?_ he pondered.  
Rina took notice of his staring at her weirdly, and asked, "Is there something wrong?"  
But Masahiro shook his head and assured, "Just still a little groggy." And they left it at that. Rina had no doubt that Masahiro suspected her mermaid self. But now she knew she had little to worry about when he discovered the truth. So she just enjoyed the rest of the day in Masahiro's company.

 **And there we go. A third boyfriend now on the path to finding out a mermaid's truth. Gotta say, Rina and Masahiro are a hard couple to write about. Despite Rina being one of my favorite of the seven, she's still a challenge because of her unique personality.**

 **But anyways, this is just the start of something new. Let's hope it's a good new, and not the other kind. Hehe. Leave reviews to let me know what you thought, and see you all next time.**

 **Encore wa ika ga?**


	5. A Strange Kindness

**Sorry I'm late in posting this up. But here we are, chapter 5 of Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo. And here we get to see someone new besides Dr. Hishki.**

 **Well, I ain't gonna spoil any more beyond that. So enjoy.**

 **Again, I do not own Mermaid Melody. That belongs to its appropriate owners.**

"I'm leaving." Rina announced to her friends.  
"Where are you going this time?" Hanon inquired curiously.  
"Masahiro's taking me to a comedy show. I'll be back this afternoon." And she left the hotel. Just then, Luchia came down the stairs, fidgeting with one of the bows in her hair.  
"Hanon, have you seen Seira yet?" she asked.  
"She hasn't come down yet. Meru tried checking up on her, but Seira didn't answer." This made Luchia worried. Living in the human world was a new experince for Seira. So she hoped that Dr. Hishki's attempts to capture them were not weighing her down somehow.  
"I'm sure Seira is fine." Hanon assured, almost like she could read Luchia's growing concern, "She is the Orange Mermaid Princess, after all.".  
"Yeah. I guess you are right." Luchia complied. But a part of her still worried. Just then, Hanon shot up from her seat and ran for the exit.  
"Well, I'll be heading out too." Hanon announced, "I want to get a gift for Nagisa. Bye." And she disappeared.  
Luchia was a little envious of her friends. Today, Kaito would be somewhere running an errand for someone. Luchia tried to convince him to let her tag along, but Kaito refused to let her. So basically, Luchia had nothing to do.  
Until Seira up to Luchia, looking rather somber.  
"Luchia, can I talk to you about something?" she asked.  
"Of course Seira. What is it?" Luchia replied.  
"Not in here." Seira made her way out to the patio area out back, ushering Luchia to follow her. Luchia was beginning to ponder what was troubling Seira. So she followed.

Once outside, the two girls leaned on the wall overlooking the beach behind the hotel. For a while, Seira didn't speak. Luchia continued to panic at the thought that she was distressed about them being hunted. But when Seira did speak, Luchia became relieved.  
"I want to know how to find the one I am meant to love, like you did." She said, "I want to find someone, and fall in love with them like you and Hanon and Rina have." The request didn't surprise Luchia one bit. She somehow knew that Seira would want to follow in her footsteps by falling in love with a human boy too.  
So, she answered, "You'll find him someday. Soon, you will find who you love."  
"But I want him right now. You found Kaito years ago. Hanon and Rina have theirs too. I don't want to wait!"  
"Seira, it took me several years to find Kaito again. Hanon spent all last year trying to win Mitsuki-sensei's affection before she loved Nagisa. And Rina just encountered Masahiro without seeking love. What I'm trying to say is that you can't just find the one you love. They will find you."  
"But how can I be sure I will?"  
"Have faith." Luchia soothed, "Don't forget, Sara fell into darkness because she believed Mitsuki-sensei abandoned her. But he never forgot Sara. Even when you won't know when or how it will happen, you'll find who you will love." Seira took the advice she was given graciously, but she was still upset that she didn't have someone like Luchia did.

The next day, Seira walked with Meru to school.  
"Ooh, this is going to be so much fun." Meru squealed, "And I know we'll be the best classmates ever, Seira-sama."  
"Please Meru, just call me Seira." Seira urged, "We're friends, after all."  
"But you're a mermaid princess. it would be disrespectful to say anything else. You're the Indian Ocean Mer-" But then, Seira forced her hand over Meru's mouth before she was revealed to everyone. A few students stared at them with puzzled expressions, but they continued on their way to school.  
Embarrassed, Seira told Meru, "I'm not a mermaid princess in the human world. So please, just call me Seira." Meru sighed uncomfortably, but she agreed anyway.  
As they continued on, someone bumped into Seira from behind and tripped her up.  
"Sorry. I wasn't looking." the person apologized. When Seira looked up, her heart skipped. The boy who had bumped her had smooth, blond hair and orange-brown eyes. He wasn't wearing the boys school uniform, but instead a fine-white tuxedo with an orange tie. "Are you alright? You're not hurt or anything?" he asked as he helped Seira up.  
"N-no, I'm alright." Seira replied.  
"Good. Well, see ya." Then he hurried through the gates.  
"Who was that boy?! He could have at least made up for hurting you." Meru complained. Seira wasn't listening. Her heart seemed to race uncontrollably after encountering the strange boy.  
 _That boy. Why does he set my heart racing?_ she thought. Seira found that she couldn't move. Her legs felt like lead. However, Meru was getting antsy. So she pushed Seira forward onto school grounds.

"Attention, everyone," the teacher announced to Seira's class, "We have a couple of new students joining our class today. Please welcome Hoshou Meru, and Masani Hugo." Meru entered the room, followed by the boy Seira met earlier.  
"Meru-san, will you have a seat next to Nagisa-san? And Hugo-san, you'll take a seat behind Seira-san." the teacher requested. Both students complied, and took their respective seats. Just as Hugo passed Seira, she clammed up. Why was she feeling this way this way when Hugo was near her? Was it possible Hugo was someone she would love Like Luchia said? How could she be sure?  
"Seira-san," the teacher called out, "Will you stop kicking your desk? You're disturbing the class." As soon as Seira came back to earth, she found the whole class staring at her. She felt very embarrassed by the attention, and apologized to everyone for the disruption. And with that, class resumed.

After class, the two girls met up with Luchia and the others on the roof.  
When Meru told them about Hugo, Hanon said, "So, there's another new boy this year."  
"But why would he be dressed so formally?" Rina questioned.  
"That is a good point." Meru agreed, "And I don't like him. Earlier, he hurt Seira-sama at the gate, and quickly lost interest when Seira said she was fine."  
"That is definitely not a good thing." Hanon complied, "I wouldn't be surprised if he works for that Dr. Hishki, and he's just spying on us."  
"Oi, Hanon. Let's not jump to any conclusions." Rina warned.  
"Yeah. It's his first day. Maybe he's just nervous." Luchia suggested. And that started a huge argument between Hanon, Rina, and Meru over who Hugo was. In the midst of it, Luchia noticed Seira drifting away from the group, looking rather distracted. Concerned, Luchia decided to catch up. When she did, Luchia asked Seira what was wrong.  
So Seira replied, "I think I found him."  
"Huh? What do you mean? Who did you find?" Luchia quizzed.  
"The boy I'm supposed to love. I think I know who it is."  
"Really? Who?"  
"That boy, Hugo. I believe he's the one. I acted so jittery around him that I feel he's the one."  
"Way to go Seira! I'm glad for you!" Luchia congratulated.  
"Now how do I get him to love me back?" Seira asked, "How can I make it like how it is with you and Kaito?"  
"Like with Kaito and me? Seira, it doesn't work like that. You'll just have to try being a friend to Hugo before you make it like how it is with me and Kaito."  
"Alright." Seira didn't like having to take this one step at a time, but she decided to follow Luchia's advice.  
At that point, Hugo came up to the two of them and spoke, "So, you're Seira, right?" When Seira noticed him, she became all jittery.  
"Y-yes. Hi, Hugo." she replied.  
"I just wanted to make up for what I did before. So, want to come to a party being held at my home?"  
"Yes, absolutely!"  
"Great. Here's the invite. Show it to the person in front of my house, and they'll let you in." Then he gave her an envelope, and began walking away. "Oh, and it's a formal party. So wear some proper attire." And he was gone. Seira just stared at the invite Hugo gave her.  
"looks like things may work out after all." Luchia giggled. And Seira could believe it.

"WHAAAAAT?!" Hippo bellowed after receiving the news, "You're going to some human's party that you don't know about?!"  
"Well, he personally invited me. So, how can I refuse?" Seira reasoned.  
"You mean to say that Hugo invited you?" Meru cried out, incredulous, "But he totally brushed you by."  
"I want to at least try this out. And, he seemed rather nice."  
"Absolutely not!" Hippo refuted, "You will not go to this human boy's party! Besides, you have nothing formal to wear."  
"Actually, Luchia was going to take me shopping to get something for it." Seira admitted.  
"Then I'm going too." Meru demanded, "No way am I letting you go alone with that ruffian being there."  
"Agreed. Meru-chan can keep you from doing something foolish." Seira felt betrayed. She would have thought she would get a chance to be with Hugo, and experience what Luchia had experienced with Kaito. However, she gave in and agreed to let Meru come along.

The weekend of the party, Seira and Meru made their way to the address on the invite. Seira wore a short, orange-and-white dress with an orange bow tied around her waist. Meru wore a light blue dress that was similar to Seira's. Their dresses were fancy enough to pass as formal, but could also be somewhat casual. As the two would walk, Seira would stumble over her short-heeled shoes that she had.  
"How do human girls walk in these things?" she griped after so long, "These shoes really hurt."  
"Then you should've gotten the one I got." Meru responded, "They're not that much different from normal shoes." Meru was wearing dress shoes that had no high heel.  
"But wasn't it you who told me these shoes would be more attractive to wear at a party like this?"  
"That was Luchia-sama who said that, not me."  
"No, I remember you saying these shoes would've looked great on you, but you suggested them to me instead."  
"I did not! Anyways, let's just get to the party and get this over with."

Once the two arrived, they were greeted by a massive mansion. The building was at least five-stories tall, with slightly smaller wings on each side. A long courtyard stood in front with a pool in the center, dotted with fountains. It was hard for either Meru or Seira to call this a "house."  
As they walked up to the gates, a butler cam up to them and requested, "Excuse me, madams. Do you have an invite?" Seira showed him the invite, and they were allowed in. The whole courtyard was packed with people. Rich people in fancy clothes stood around conversing with each other. Some sat at tables eating and enjoying small talk. The sight made Seira self-conscious.  
"Maybe we should leave." Seira suggested to Meru.  
Meru agreed, but stopped when someone called to them, "Hey there. You made it." Before long, Hugo had caught up to them. "Welcome to my home." he greeted.  
"Th-thanks for inviting us, Hugo-san." Seira replied respectfully.  
"Just call me Hugo, Seira." he asked, "Who's your friend?" Meru just scowled at Hugo.  
"This is Meru. She's a friend from overseas." Seira introduced.  
"Overseas, huh? Do you come from America too, Meru?"  
"America?" both girls questioned in unison.  
"You don't know what America is?!"  
"No. Not really." Meru quickly lost interest in the conversation. With a huff, she took her leave of Hugo and Seira.  
 _Meru, do you really dislike Hugo that much?_ Seira worried. But then, Hugo grabbed Seira's hand and began leading her from the party.  
"I want to take you somewhere, to talk more." he told her. With her heart racing, Seira gladly followed.

Hugo led Seira to a stretch of beach some ways away from the mansion.  
"Ah, finally." Hugo sighed, stripping off his tux and revealing street clothes underneath. Board shorts and a tan T-shirt with a picture of a wave on it. "I thought I was going to boil in that stuffy outfit." Seira was surprised.  
"You mean, you don't like to wear fancy clothes?" she asked him.  
"Naw. I'd much rather wear what I want. But my folks wouldn't let me. As business people, they tell me that I must look my best to be the best. It's rather annoying." With a huge stretch, Hugo laid down in the sand, his head resting in his hands. Feeling obligated, Seira sat down next to him.  
"It must be nice, having no expectations on how to live." Hugo muttered, "Getting to do what you want however you want."  
"Not always." Seira sighed, "Sometimes I'm expected to do some things and stay away from others."  
"But at least you're free to be who you want to be, and not forced to be something somebody else wants you to be." Seira wasn't so sure about that. As much as she and the others tried, Hippo and Nikora did try to keep them focused on their goal as Mermaid Princesses. But, she could understand why Hugo felt the way he did.  
After pondering it over, Seira inquired, "Hugo, what's America like?"  
With a heavy sigh, Hugo mournfully answered, "Not that much of a great place. People fight each other over the smallest things, no one can decide on anything meaningful, and we blame our government for all our problems. It's not like here."  
"You mean, it's horrible over there?"  
"I didn't say that. There are some good things in America; food, fun, travel. It's just not like here. Here, things are more... beautiful." The two quickly found themselves gazing at each other. Seira could feel her heart race, so did Hugo. their faces came so close that they could almost kiss.  
That is, until, "Do you truly find this beautiful? A rather vulgar scene, I'll say." the two turned to the voice, startled by the intrusion. Floating above the water was a woman in a Chinese-style dress. Blue butterfly wings protruded from behind her, her long, violet hair was tied in twin Chinese buns. She also carried a fan with her. Seira gasped, for she recognized the water demon.  
 _Linhua! How did she find us?!_ Seira never met the water demon personally, because at the time she was split into several heart shards that Luchia had to recover. But during that time, she did discover what kind of a person Linhua was.  
"Who are you?! And... what are you?" Hugo demanded.  
Chuckling playfully, Linhua replied, "I shall be your teacher on what is truly beautiful. Only a beautiful person like myself can know its true meaning." Suddenly, Seira felt afraid. This sudden fear just came upon her, just by being near Linhua. She wanted to run, and take Hugo with her. But she couldn't move. She was frozen in place. The only other time this fear consumed her like this was in the presence of Linhua's old master, Mikeru.  
Putting himself in front of her, Hugo challenged, "Whoever you are, leave us be! We don't need you to teach us anything."  
"Actually, you two aren't the only ones who need this lesson." the water demon returned, "But I suppose you may be the first." Then, Linhua radiated a strong power, and split herself into 12 tiny forms of herself, each mini-figure wielding a different Chinese instrument.  
"Stubborn boys need a lesson."  
"Stubborn girls too."  
"We'll show you!" They squeaked. And they began to play.  
Linhua's voice carried along through the music, singing as if she were a goddess of beauty. The music caused Seira and Hugo to dance. But they weren't dancing of their own will. Their bodies moved on their own.  
"What's going on? I can't stop." Hugo gasped.  
"It's this music. It's making us dance." Seira told him. The song continued on, wearing them down with its influence. When Linhua was finished, both kids were exhausted from moving randomly.  
"Good, we wore them out."  
"Let's get 'em!" The mini's squealed. They charged straight for Seira, aiming to capture her. With one more spurt of energy, Hugo shielded her by getting in their way. Enraged, the mini Linhuas started hitting and pestering Hugo like little nats.  
"Seira, run!" he shouted, "Get help! Run away, now!"  
"What about you?" Seira asked.  
"No time! GO!" Hugo barked. understanding the situation, Seira fled. But when she was a good distance away from the scene, she dove into the water, and rushed back as her mermaid self.

As Seira made her way back, Hugo collapsed from the barrage of mini's attacking him.  
"Good. He's done."  
"But where's that girl we were looking for? She disappeared." the mini's bickered.  
"I'm right here." Seira surprised, as she changed into her Pichi Pichi form.

 _ **"Orange Pearl Voice!"**_ Seira's outfit was very similar to Luchia and Hanon's, but orange.

When she finished transforming, she stood before the Linhua minis, ready to sing.  
"You hurt someone I care for. I won't forgive you this time."  
"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!"  
Seira's song was a personal one. She sung about her time in slumber, waiting to be awakened and share in the joys of her friends. Of the wishes she wanted to come true, and the love she desired to feel. As the Orange Pearl Mermaid Princess, Seira's song was infused with more power than the other Mermaid Princesses. It's power caused Linhua to merge back into one person. However, the song wasn't strong enough to force Linhua to retreat.  
"Well done, mermaid princess." Linhua cringed, "However, you did not do well enough. I was infused with some of your power by Mikeru-sama. So I can't be beaten by just you alone." Seira didn't like the odds this encounter created. If her songs weren't powerful enough, how could she last against Linhua?  
"You need a lesson." Linhua continued, "And I shall teach it to you." Waving her fan, she scattered what looked like fluff over Seira. At first, they did nothing. But as more drifted onto her, they began to hurt. Linhua continued to harm Seira by fanning more of the stuff onto her.  
"Don't you feel more beautiful now?" she asked the ailing mermaid princess, "Soon you will be a beautiful gift for Hishki-sama." Linhua was about to fan more of the stuff to make Seira pass out from the pain, until Hugo grabbed her wrist and tried to wrestle it out of her hand.  
"Don't think I'm done yet." he growled, "I won't let you hurt her."  
"Insolent brat!" Linhua seethed, "Your lesson is over!" And she knocked him out with a menacing elbow blow.  
"HUGO!" Seira cried out.

In that instant, her pearl radiated an extremely bright light. Linhua tried to shield her eyes from the light, while Seira stood gazing at a figure appearing from the light.  
"Sara-san." The woman nodded in response. The Orange Pearl Mermaid Princess before Seira: Sara.  
"Seira, sing." she spoke.  
"I did." Seira replied, "But, Linhua still has some of my power. I'm not able to beat her."  
"The power she has was when you were still learning how to love. But now you know." Sara explained, "Your song is stronger now. Your love for that boy empowers you. Do you love him?"  
"Yes, Sara-san."  
"Then sing, using the power of your love." And Sara's image vanished.  
Seira looked at her mic, as if to find the meaning behind Sara's words. How is she stronger than before? But when she looked at Hugo's crumpled figure, she realized what she meant. Seira had her power, just like Luchia and everyone else did.  
With renewed energy, Seira sung once more. This time, her song described her discovery of love. What it meant to love, how it felt, and the joy it brought. Seira sung of how she would fight for this love and defend its purpose. Her new song overwhelmed Linhua.  
"I have her power! How can I be losing to her?!" She complained.  
When Seira finished, she called out, "Love Shower Pitch! Would you like an encore?"  
"This isn't over! One day, you will learn that you cannot win. Not anymore!" Linhua seethed. Then she disappeared.

As Hugo finally became conscious, he spotted a familiar face hovering over him. But as he saw more around him, he saw that the person had an orange tail instead of legs.  
"Wh-Who are you?" he groaned, "I feel like I have met you before." The mermaid didn't respond. Seeing that he was alright, Seira returned to the sea.  
"Wait!" Hugo called as he stood up.  
Seira turned to him, and told him, "Come find me. I'll always be near." And she dove under the waves, leaving Hugo to try and understand the mysterious mermaid he had just met.  
Figuring that people would be looking for him soon, Hugo began making his way back to the party. As he did, the image of the mermaid from before kept coming to mind. It somewhat haunted him, but in a good way. He yearned to find this mermaid again.  
In his pondering, he heard Seira call out to him. Then he saw her rushing up to him.  
"You're okay." she gasped as she approached.  
"Yeah, I'm okay." Hugo shrugged, "Seems you are too."  
"Yes. I ran for the mansion, but I got worried that something would happen to you. So I ran back." Hugo felt touched. But then Seira's pendant caught his eye. It looked the same as the mermaid's pendant. But Hugo shrugged off the idea.  
"Let's find your friend Meru." Hugo suggested, "The sun's starting to set, and the party should be ending soon."  
"Alright." And so Hugo escorted Seira back to the manse.

The next school day, Seira was walking along a fuming Meru.  
"I really don't like that boy." she mumbled aloud, "He takes you somewhere, away from me, then comes back near the end like he had it all planned out."  
"Meru, please. It wasn't like that." Seira tried to tell her friend. When they had gotten back from the party, Seira told everyone about her encounter with the water demon. The news put everyone on edge, now that they were aware that Dr. Hishki had revived Mikeru's three servants. Which made it clear that being near the sea from here on would be risky. But Meru, and even Hippo, were really upset that Seira went off alone with Hugo.  
As the two approached the gates, they ran into hugo, all dressed up again.  
"So, how did you enjoy the party the other day?" he asked.  
"It was fine." Meru huffed.  
"It was great. Thank you for inviting us." Seira spoke to draw attention away from Meru. But when she did, she noticed Hugo staring at her weirdly. And she began to wonder if he was thinking about her mermaid self.  
But then Hugo shrugged and said nonchalantly, "Well, see you in class." And as Meru continued to seethe at his behavior, Seira couldn't help but hope. Someday, maybe she and Hugo would be like Luchia and Kaito.

 **And there you go. Our new OC: Hugo Masani. He's a bit of an odd one to figure out. But we'll see how he fares with Seira and her secret.**

 **Oh, also, for that song Seira initially sings, I was thinking about the one she sung while Luchia was still trying to retrieve all her heart pieces. Though I never quite found out what the name was. Just an FYI for you guys.**

 **Stay tuned for more. Please review and fave.**

 **Till then; Encore wa ika ga?**


	6. Little Ones

**Sorry if this seems like a filler, but I do plan to use some material from here later on. Hope you enjoy.**

 **I do not own Mermaid Melody.**

Up in her room, Luchia was enjoying a relaxing bath. She was enjoying herself so much, that she was singing her personal song, "Feeling of Love." She enjoyed singing so much that, when Hippo intruded, she freaked out from being interrupted.  
"Get out, pervert!" she squealed as she splashed him.  
"Luchia-san, listen!" Hippo scolded after shaking off the water, "Kaito-san came by and said he wanted to see you."  
"You couldn't have waited until I got out to tell me?" Luchia grumbled. Slightly embarrassed, Hippo took off, closing the door behind him. Still, the news did cause Luchia to ponder. What was Kaito wanting to see her for?  
After finishing her bath, Luchia got dressed and went to meet Kaito.  
"There you are." Kaito greeted as she came downstairs.  
"Is something the matter, Kaito?" Luchia asked.  
"Naw. Rihito-san is heading out of town for a little while to conduct a concert, but he can't bring Mikaru along with him. He asked if I could watch her while he was gone. I said I would."  
"That's wonderful Kaito!" Luchia beamed, "Mikaru will definitely love having you around."  
"Yeah but... He also asked if you could come and watch her with me." Kaito added, "So I wanted to come and ask: would you like to help me watch Mikaru?"  
"Yeah! It'll be fun."  
"Great! I'll come pick you up tomorrow then. We'll be staying at their mansion, so don't forget to pack." And with their last farewell, Kaito left the hotel. Feeling giddy all of a sudden, Luchia went upstairs to pack.

"Luchia-san, is it really a good idea to watch Mikaru with Kaito?" Hippo questioned.  
"It will be fine. Besides, it should be a lot of fun taking care of Mikaru."  
"But what if, by some chance, she remembers her old life and hates you again?"  
"That won't happen." Luchia assured, still deciding on what clothes to pack.  
"Hmm, what is this I see?" Taki muttered, appearing all of a sudden in the room.  
"T-Taki-san!" Luchia panicked, "What are you doing in my room?!"  
"A dark tide flows in unexpectedly." she answered mysteriously, "I must understand its intent." Plucking some feathers from Hippo, she mumbled, "Nandabadaba, Pichi Pichi!" Hippo vaulted up in anguish from having his feathers plucked and collided into the ceiling.  
Rubbing the stuff together, Taki ascertained, "It says no harm will come to any of you."  
"As I thought." Luchia beamed, "You were worried over nothing, Hippo."  
"Probably." Hippo replied sheepishly.  
"What's this?! Something else is presenting itself." Taki gasped. Taking another tuft from Hippo (causing him to vault a second time), she attempted to better understand the prediction.  
"I see." she spoke at last, "It says that Mikaru will have a fated encounter with a being from the sea."  
"A being of the sea?" Luchia quizzed. But then she thought, _What if it's one of the water demons? Could Taki-san's prediction be right this time?  
_ "Who this being is, I'm not sure. So I'll check one more time." Taki told Luchia. But rather than have more of his feathers pulled out, Hippo raced out of the room to escape Taki. Unable to clarify her prediction even more so, Taki left as well.  
Luchia didn't know whether to believe Taki's fortune or not this time. But if Mikaru was supposed to meet a being from the sea, she would make sure it wasn't Lady Bat or the other water demons.  
"I will protect Mikaru. I won't let her remember them." she promised herself.

The next day, both Luchia and Kaito were waiting outside Rihito's manse to be let in. Luchia felt extremely nervous about what she was going to do. What if this was a bad idea? Would she be able to take care of Mikaru with Kaito, or would she just get in the way? But she shook the idea out of her head. No way was she going to be a burden.  
"Relax." Kaito urged her, "Mikaru doesn't remember her past life. She won't remember you when she sees you." Just then, Rihito appeared in the doorway to let the two in.  
"Kaito-san!" came an excited Mikaru, "You came!"  
"Were you expecting me, Mikaru?" Kaito inquired of the youngster as she came up to him.  
"Yes yes! Onii-sama told me you would be coming over."  
"Hello there, Mikaru." Luchia greeted. Suddenly, Mikaru became puzzled.  
"Onii-sama, Kaito-san, who is this person?" she asked.  
"Be polite Mikaru." Rihito told her, "That's Luchia-san. I told you Kaito might be bringing her over to help."  
"Oh. Hello, Luchia-san." With that settled, Rihito began to explain Kaito's and Luchia's responsibilities while they were there. He also explained that they could go into town with Mikaru, but that they had to be especially careful when they did. Once the three were clear on what they were supposed to do, Rihito gave Mikaru one last farewell before taking off.  
"Kaito-san, are we going to play a lot today?" Mikaru asked eagerly.  
"Yeah. We'll be able to play as much as you want." Kaito replied, "All three of us are going to have a blast."  
"Hooray!" Then Mikaru went over to Luchia and asked her, "Luchia-san, you're going to play with us too, right?"  
"Of course. I'll play with you as much as you want. Just like Kaito said we will." she answered cheerfully.  
"Yay! Play! Play!" And with that, the day had begun.

Before she knew it, Luchia got pulled into all sorts of activities and games with Mikaru. They would be playing hide-and-seek, dress-up, play cooking. Sometimes, Kaito got roped into all the fun too. At some points during the time, Mikaru would faint and worry Luchia and Kaito, until she revealed that she was playing around. But in all, Luchia couldn't believe how much fun they were having.

Near the end of the day, Mikaru began to grow tired and sleepy. So Luchia took Mikaru up to bed for the night.  
As she began tucking in the little tyke, Mikaru requested, "Luchia-san, can you sing a song for me?"  
"Sing a song?" Luchia repeated.  
"Yes. Onii-sama said you sing a lot. And he said all I had to do was ask, and you would. Please, will you sing for me?" Luchia was very surprised that Mikaru would ask her to sing. But if this was because Rihito had told her, then she figured it was alright.  
"Okay. But if I sing for you, can you promise to go to sleep?" she asked.  
"I promise." Mikaru promised.  
Taking a deep breath, Luchia began to sing a slow version of "Legend of Mermaid." She sang it almost like a lullaby. As she did, she suddenly envisioned her and Mikaru, together. But Mikaru was older, her age even. She saw the two of them playing at the beach, shopping, and spending time with their friends. It was almost as if the song brought up visions of what could have been if Luchia and Mikaru had been friends.  
Before Luchia reached the chorus of the song, she noticed that the real Mikaru was fast asleep. So she smiled, and finished her song.  
When she was done, Luchia whispered, "Sweet dreams, Mikaru." And she left the room.

Luchia found Kaito waiting for her in the living room.  
"Mikaru's asleep, huh?" he inquired.  
"Yeah. She wanted me to sing for her before she did." Luchia told him.  
Kaito chuckled, then said, "That's good. I'm glad Mikaru is getting used to you. To be honest, I was a little worried that she would act like before." That was a concern Luchia had secretly held when coming over; that Mikaru would cling to Kaito like she did in her past life. but, she was glad when that wasn't the case this time.  
As the night wore on, Luchia offered to cook dinner for her and Kaito. But just before she could prep any food, the phone rang.  
"Hello. This is Luchia." she answered.  
"LUCHIA! WHERE DID YOU DISAPPEAR TO?!" Nikora came over the line.  
"I'm out somewhere with Kaito. We're just getting dinner."  
"Don't think you can fool me! Hippo told me you're at someone's place, watching someone called Mikaru."  
"Hippo!" Luchia gasped. Whenever Luchia did something behind Nikora's back, she usually had Hippo keep his beak shut on what she was doing. Apparently, that didn't happen this time.  
"We're getting swamped with customers, and Hanon and Seira can't take care of them all. I've had to call Rina in to help too." Nikora explained, "I need you to get back here, NOW!"  
"But, Onee-sama, I promised Rihito-san I would look after Mikaru." Luchia pleaded, "Can't I stay over for a little bit longer?"  
With a heavy sigh, Nikora replied, "If you can help us get a handle on business tonight, I'll let you go back."  
"Thank you, Onee-sama."

After letting Kaito know about her change of plans, Luchia returned to Pearl Piari. She thought that she would only have to do one or two things and be back before she knew it. Not the case. Nikora had Luchia work just as hard as Seira and the others. She was doing room service at one point, cleaning rooms at another, and helping Nikora in the kitchen sometime later. She was being run ragged.  
At close to 10 o'clock, Luchia had done about everything Nikora needed her to do.  
She was just heading out when Nikora chastised, "Where do you think you are going? You're not done yet."  
"Aw! But I did everything you asked me to do!" Luchia complained, "What more do you need me to do?"  
"We're having an idol concert for our late-night guests. You're still needed in that."  
"Geez." Facing little choice, Luchia slumped back inside.

In the backstage area, all three girls transformed into their Pichi Pichi forms. Another way Nikora ran business at the hotel was having the mermaid princesses perform in an idol concert. It was always such a huge success, so she would have them perform for special events and large crowds of customers.  
Today was no exception. As Luchia peeked out to the crowd, she moaned at the crowd of customers waiting to listen to her, Hanon, and Rina.  
"Aw! There are so many people!" Luchia groaned.  
"Lighten up Luchia." Hanon chastised, "We only have to sing one or two songs. Then you'll be back with Kaito."  
"That is unless Nikora-san has us go all night." Rina pointed out.  
"But I can't do this all night!" Luchia complained, "I'm supposed to be caring for Mikaru!" Rina and Hanon just sighed. When Luchia was committed to something, she was rather stubborn about it.  
But then, it was time to go onstage. For their first song, Luchia sung "Feeling of Love" with Hanon and Rina accompanying. The crowd cheered as they sang, enjoying the music and the girls. When Luchia finished her song, Rina took over and began her song "Fated Love."  
But while she was singing her solo, Hanon whispered to Luchia, "We'll take care of this. Go back to Kaito and Mikaru." Thanking her friends, Luchia slipped off stage and raced back to the manse.

The next morning, Luchia awoke to the sound of something sizzling. Sitting up, she saw Kaito in the kitchen preparing breakfast.  
"Morning sleepyhead." he welcomed.  
With a huge yawn, Luchia got up from sleeping on the couch and returned, "Good morning, Kaito. Um, what are you doing?"  
"Making breakfast. What else does it look like, silly?" Kaito answered her question, then perked, "Oh yeah, the Spring Festival is starting today?"  
"Spring Festival?" Luchia quizzed.  
"I was thinking, we could take Mikaru to it. She might really enjoy it."  
"That sounds perfect, Kaito! Mikaru would love the Spring Festival."  
"There's something else." Kaito spoke, slightly hushed, "I want to show her something. Something I saw at the last festival." As he set the pan with the breakfast down, Kaito whispered his plan to Luchia.

That night, Luchia, Kaito, and Mikaru were strolling through the stand occupied venues. Mikaru looked on in awe at everything she saw. There were food carts, gift stands, even an aquatic stand selling pet fish.  
"Wow! This is so amazing!" Mikaru exclaimed.  
"Do you like it, Mikaru?" Luchia asked.  
"Yes yes! I like it so much!" Luchia felt very happy that Mikaru was having so much fun here.  
Ah Luchia," Kaito spoke to her, "I think I saw something fishy back at one of the stalls. Could you check it out for me?" Luchia was puzzled by Kaito's question, until he winked at her. The signal!  
"Okay Kaito. I'll be right back." she replied. And she took off.  
"Luchia-san!" Mikaru called out to her. But Luchia just kept on going.  
"She'll be back Mikaru." Kaito assured, "Follow me. There's something I want to show you."

Luchia hurried through the plaza, heading for the coast to start Kaito's plan. Earlier, Kaito had requested that she met Mikaru as her mermaid self. At first, Luchia was unsure about the idea. But Kaito told her that he told Mikaru the story of when he was rescued by her when he was little. When he did, Mikaru suddenly became interested. She had even told Kaito that she wanted to see one if she could. So Kaito thought that she could meet Luchia in the same way he met her during the Spring Festival. So Luchia agreed to it.  
But as Luchia went through town, she accidentally bumped into someone.  
"Ouch!" she groaned. When she noticed who she bumped into, she saw that it was Hugo.  
"Hey! Watch where you're-" he began to yell. That was, until he saw that it was Luchia.  
"Hugo, is something wrong?" came Seira's voice. Then she came out of the store behind Hugo, surprised to see Luchia.  
"Luchia! What are you doing here?" Seira inquired.  
After soothing her injury, Luchia answered, "I'm here with Kaito and Mikaru. We wanted to show Mikaru around the festival."  
"Wait, are you saying THE Mikaru is here?" Hugo questioned. This surprised Luchia and Seira quite a bit.  
"Hugo, do you know Mikaru?" Seira asked.  
"Only from my parents. They said she was a part of a rich family, but that she was always ill. Her chances of recovering were slim. So I'm a little surprised that she's up and about." At that point, Luchia remembered that she was in a hurry. With a quick farewell, Luchia raced for the ocean.

Before she entered the ocean, Luchia took a deep breath.  
 _No turning back now._ She told herself. Then she dove under, instantly changing into her mermaid self. She was just about to make her way to the secret inlet, when bats started swarming in front of her, forming Lady Bat.  
"This time, I'll capture you, Mermaid Princess." she beckoned evilly, "And you won't be able to resist my allure."  
"Lady Bat!" Luchia exclaimed, "What are you dong here?"  
"Fulfilling Hishki-sama's wishes, Now, prepare yourself!" But as Lady Bat was preparing her dark song, Luchia tried to flee in the other direction. But then Linhua appeared, blocking her escape.  
"And where do you think you are going, Mermaid Princess?" Luchia was shocked to find two water demons trying to capture her. But as Linhua split into her mini-selves, Luchia tried going to shore. This time, Arara got in the way.  
"You don't want to miss the fun, don't you?" she teased, "Because all of us will capture you this time." Then she activated a remote, and a small robot floated up, blocking off Luchia's last escape.  
Now that she was surrounded, all three water demons began to sing their songs. With the fusion of the three songs being sung together, Luchia began having trouble bearing with their power. The robot made things worse, amplifying their power through its speakers like a boom box.  
As she was reaching her limit, Luchia cried out, "KAITO!"

As soon as Kaito heard his name get called out, he knew things were bad.  
 _Luchia's in danger._ he figured, _I have to go save her. But, what about Mikaru?_ They had reached the inlet where Luchia was supposed to meet them. But he couldn't leave Mikaru alone out here. Rihito had told him and Luchia to care for her at all times. This was quite the dilemma.  
"Kaito-san, what are we doing here?" Mikaru finally inquired, noticing Kaito's grim expression. Now Kaito faced an impossible decision. He couldn't tell her nothing was wrong, she already knew something was wrong. But he couldn't tell her that Luchia was in danger either. And the only other solution risked Luchia turning into bubbles. Fortunately, there came a fourth option just walking up to them. As soon as Hugo and Seira came up to him, They were puzzled to find Kaito and Mikaru here.  
"Kaito? What are you doing here?" Seira inquired.  
"I'm meeting Luchia here." he answered, "What are you doing here?"  
"I wanted to take Seira someplace private where we could hang out normally." Hugo replied, "I remembered this place when I was very little. But I didn't think anyone else would be here."  
"Kaito-san, who are these people?" Mikaru asked, worried by the intrusion. But this was the turn of events Kaito needed.  
Turning to Mikaru, Kaito requested, "Mikaru, I need you to stay here with these guys. They're friends of mine. They'll keep you safe. I need to go find Luchia." Mikaru didn't understand much about the situation, but she was willing to stay if Kaito trusted Hugo and Seira. With matters settled, Kaito took off in the direction Luchia's call came from. Seira, sensing the conflict Luchia was in, took off shortly after he went. Leaving Hugo to watch Mikaru.

Back at the trap, Luchia was on the verge of passing out from the water demon's dark songs.  
"Heh heh. All too easy." Lady Bat chuckled.  
"We should do this more. Then we can capture the Mermaid Princesses easily." Arara said gleefully.  
"What a beautiful idea." Linhua agreed after merging back into one. That was when they heard Kaito call out, and spotted him swimming over to them.  
"What do we have here?" Lady Bat taunted as Kaito approached.  
"Let Luchia go!" Kaito demanded. The three water demons just laughed at the demand, humored by some human boy's bravado.  
"You have some guts boy. But what makes you think we'll listen to you?" Then, a strong light began to radiate from Kaito, surprising the water demons.  
"I said, let Luchia go!" Kaito roared, "LUCHIA!" Then, the symbol on his forehead radiated a strong light over the water demons. Its power shattered the robot aiding them, and woke Luchia up.  
When Luchia spotted Kaito using his Panterassa powers, she called back, "KAITO!" The force of the power pushed the three water demons away, then began to fade. AS it did, Kaito slumped forward from exhaustion. Using his Panterassa powers always drained him. Luchia immediately swam over to him, and was quickly met by Seira. Luchia and Seira both knew Kaito would be alright, his powers only exhausted him. In fact, he was already starting to wake up.  
"Thank you, Kaito." Luchia said to him.  
"Don't thank me yet. Take care of those three first."  
"Right." Then, Luchia turned to Seira and asked, "Are you ready, Seira?"  
"Ready, Luchia." Seira answered. And they transformed into their Pichi Pichi forms.

"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Orange Pearl Voice!"

After Seira and Luchia transformed into their second forms, they faced off against the three water demons.  
"What do you think you can do?" Lady Bat taunted, "The two of you can't beat us."  
"Yeah! Looks like you're all washed up." Arara added.  
"That's what you think." Seira returned, "But this time, our power is greater than you think."  
"And now we will show you how much stronger we are." Luchia finished.  
"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!" The song the two sung this time was an upbeat song, describing the wish of love they had. That as the dark forces pressed in, they would hold onto their wish. And to those who were against their ideals, they would fight back and that they would not back down.  
Despite that it was only two Mermaid Princesses singing, their power was enough to give the water demons a headache.  
"You two shouldn't have underestimated them." Linhua critiqued her comrades, "They seem to have gotten stronger since we last met them."  
As the duet finished, they called out, "Love Shower Pitch!" Unable to bear the combined suffering and humiliation, the three disappeared in their particular fashions. Luchia sighed with relief at their retreat,glad for them to be gone at last.

Hugo was very upset that Kaito, some surfing jock, and his newest friend and who may be an interest, Seira, would leave him to watch a little kid. Even if it was the girl Mikaru he had heard about. It was appalling. But before long, Kaito came back like he promised, looking rather soaked.  
"Mikaru!" he called out to her.  
"Kaito-san!" Mikaru cheered back cheerfully. As she went back to him, Hugo was glad to have been done babysitting.  
All of a sudden, as he looked out to sea, he spotted what looked like an orange tail darting behind one of the rocks.  
Then, a memory flashed through his mind of the mermaid who saved him. So he dashed out to where the tail disappeared. When he did, he found her as if she had been waiting for him.  
"You are real." Hugo gasped. But Seira turned away, like she was about to dive away. "W-Wait please!" Hugo urgently called, "I've wanted to find you ever since we first met." Hugo thought he was being stupid, talking to a mermaid like it was love at first sight. But he couldn't help it. He had yearned to see this mermaid again after their first encounter.  
Turning to face him, Seira told him, "I have wanted to see you again too. But I was afraid you had forgotten me, so I stayed away."  
"I could never forget you." Hugo said with conviction, "I never want to forget you, and will do everything I can to do so." It was at that moment, that Seira kissed Hugo. A rush of feelings raced into Hugo, and his mind felt like mush. Then Seira disappeared beneath the waves. And Hugo was left longing to find her even more.

During that whole exchange, Kaito made sure Mikaru was alright. He had left her rather suddenly, so he was worried that she may have been rattled. But Mikaru seemed to understand Kaito's reasons, and replied that everything was alright.  
It was then that the two of them heard a voice, singing.  
"Huh? What is that singing?" Mikaru asked.  
 _Just as planned._ Kaito thought. "Let's go see." he suggested. Taking Mikaru's hand, Kaito led her to the source of the voice.  
When they found where it was coming from, they found Luchia (in mermaid form) singing on one of the rocks. Mikaru could not believe her eyes. But she knew she was seeing a real mermaid.  
"So pretty!" Mikaru exclaimed in delight. Luchia stopped singing, and saw her two onlookers. then she dove away.  
"Wait!" Mikaru called out.  
"She can't stay here too long Mikaru." Kaito explained, "She had to return home, before anyone else found her."  
"Kaito-san, do you know that mermaid?"  
"Yeah. She was the one. the one who saved me, long ago." Mikaru was astonished that the mermaid they just saw was the same one from Kaito's story. But she was super excited to have met her.  
And Kaito spotted Luchia, hidden somewhat out behind the rocks. Looking on at him like before, with a longing to be with Kaito for reals. And now, she hoped the same for Mikaru.


	7. Privy Neighbors

**Well, we're back. And we have a new little surprise in this chapter of MMPPD. Let's see what happens when we have some new 'guests' arrive at Pearl Piari.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Mermaid Melody. All rights belong to their appropriate owners.**

 **Also, there is a poll still up I wish to be answered: which story would you want me to post more of on this weekly basis; Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo, or the Guardian and Maiden of the Sea? Please answer this poll soon so I know what to focus on for a time.**

 **And now, enjoy.**

It was the middle of a bright, sunny morning. But the Mermaid Princesses had nothing to do.  
"I wish we had something to do." Hanon sighed.  
"Our boyfriends are all busy elsewhere, leaving us with nothing to do and no one to be with." Luchia moaned.  
"But, with that Dr. Hishki hunting us, I guess we should be lucky that we have so little to do." Rina tried to reason. But the four of them just sighed, having absolutely nothing to do for the entire day.  
Then, Seira bolted to her feet and proclaimed, "Well, I won't just sit here and gripe all day! With or without my Hugo, I will enjoy today like there is no tomorrow!"  
"Great plan. But how will you do it?" Rina posed the question. Instantly, Seira had been shot down. And once again, all four fell back into their moaning cycle.  
Without warning, the doorbell for the hotel rang. And the four girls became quite puzzled by the sound, since they weren't expecting anyone to be coming over today.  
"Oh, they finally arrived." Nikora spoke cheerfully as she passed the room.  
"Who finally arrived?" Luchia asked her.  
With a wink and a smile, Nikora answered, "Our new guests." And she made her way to the door. Curious, the four followed to find out who was coming over.  
As they neared the entryway, they heard Nikora greet, "You three finally came. Welcome back." And when the girls saw who it was, their jaws dropped.  
"Glad to be back." replied Karen, the Purple Pearl Mermaid Princess from the Antarctic Ocean. Accompanying her were Noellle, the Indigo Pearl Mermaid Princess from the Arctic Ocean, and Coco, the Yellow Pearl Mermaid Princess from the South Pacific.

It was when the three new Mermaid Princesses came in that everyone found out why they had been brought to Pearl Piari. Nikora and Hippo both explained that since Dr. Hishki knew about the mermaid kingdom in the North Pacific, all the other kingdoms were in danger as well. Thus, Hippo sent messengers to bring Karen, Noelle, and Coco to Japan so that they could be hidden. Further, since the water demons had attempted to capture Luchia, Hanon, Rina, and Seira on more than one occasion, all seven of them were practically restricted from leaving Pearl Piari.  
"We cannot make even the slightest opportunity for that Dr. Hishki to capture any of you." Hippo concluded, "So the seven of you are not allowed to leave for any reason." This was a shock to them all.  
"But Kaito has a surfing tournament next week!" Luchia argued.  
"Masahiro has a boxing match tomorrow too." Rina inputted.  
"Coco and I were going to check out the new resort that opened near here too." Noelle added. As soon as that started, everyone began throwing out reasons for why they couldn't stay.  
Eventually, Nikora got tired of it and scolded, "YOU ARE THE MERMAID PRINCESSES! YOU CAN'T JUST GO DO WHATEVER YOU WANT! YOU MUST SHOW SOME DIGNITY!" Just the scolding alone made the seven of them clam up. Clearing her throat, Nikora added, "Until the threat has lifted, none of you are to leave. Understood?"  
"Yes, Nikora-san." the seven replied in unison. With that done, Nikora went out to get groceries for the hotel.

"Just great!" Hanon griped, "Now not only do we have nothing to do today, we can't do anything for the rest of our lives."  
"No argument there. And we really don't know why Nikora is keeping us prisoner." Karen replied.  
"You mean, we'll be cooped up here until we're all old hags?!" Coco freaked. The seven of them could imagine the idea of still being in the hotel, turning old with time. Luchia shuddered at the idea. No way could she live like that.  
"We can't help it." Noelle spoke up, "We'll have to take the offensive, and prove to Nikora-san that we won't be prisoners." It was a great idea, but how would they accomplish it? It was then that Meru came in and offered a way out.  
"If you want to get out of here, I have an idea of how we can slip out from under Nikora-san's nose." she told them.  
Before long, the seven mermaid princesses were climbing down from Luchia's window, using bed sheets tied together like a rope. Once they had all gotten out, they snuck away along the beach towards town.

After that, the girls started to enjoy themselves. They went shopping, ate at some restaurants, sang karaoke, anything they could do to escape being cooped up. It was rare for the seven of them to be together for anything. But it was loads of fun.

As they strolled along the coast, enjoying being out and about, they came across Maki's beach house cafe. They all went to peer inside, and saw that it was swamped. All the tables were occupied with guests wanting to take a break. And the only one serving them was,  
"Kaito!" Luchia exclaimed. Kaito was being run ragged; taking orders, then returning to the kitchen to make them, then delivering the food to each table as fast as he could.  
"Who knew this place would get so busy so quickly." Hanon observed.  
"But how is Kaito able to handle this many people?" Seira asked.  
That was when Karen came up with a surprising decision. "Well, I think I'll help too." she told everyone. Noelle and Coco were astonished by Karen's decision. But Luchia also made the decision to help out Kaito and Maki.  
Rina and hanon also decided to help, and so did Seira, claiming, "If we work here, we can avoid Nikora-san from finding us and be safe from the water demons." Seeing no way to avoid it, Noelle and Coco joined up too. So all seven were in agreement to work at Maki's beach house.

Maki was very grateful for the girls desire to help, and set them to work right away. Luchia, Hanon, and Rina skated around, waiting on customers; Karen, Noelle, and Coco helped make the food in the kitchen; and Seira helped Kaito clean the dishes. With the group's teamwork, guests began streaming in larger groups. The place was becoming quite busy.

By mid-afternoon, the amount of guests began dwindling down. By that time, some of the girls switched jobs with each other.  
While Hanon was helping Coco out cooking, Coco suddenly asked, "So, have you and Nagisa gotten even more into each other since last time?"  
"Huh? Me and Nagisa?" Hanon quizzed her friend.  
"Well, last time I was here, Nagisa really liked you. He even asked you out. So I was wondering if he became your boyfriend while I was away."  
Immediately becoming annoyed, Hanon haughtily replied, "That is not going to happen! Nagisa is still irresponsible and insensitive to someone else's feelings." But even as she said that, she could not help blushing bright red.  
With a small giggle, Coco said, "That's not what you really believe, is it?" And that just made Hanon angry, and she put her anger to use by working on the food while Coco kept pestering her.

Meanwhile, Rina was cleaning some of the tables off when Karen came over.  
"You've been enjoying your time in the human world. Haven't you, Rina?" Karen inquired.  
"Yeah. I'm surprised that I've become so interested in the human world." Rina replied.  
"I'm guessing it has nothing to do with a certain someone or anything, does it?"  
"Wh-What are you talking about? You know I'm not into love like Luchia and Hanon are."  
"Then why were you so distracted at your kingdom's celebration?"  
"Where would you get that idea?"  
"Admit it, you have someone you really like."  
"I'm not the one who stares off in the distance." Rina countered.  
"Now what are you talking about?!"

While that scene carried on, Luchia had just popped into the kitchen to bring the next order out. But, she had noticed Karen and Rina squabbling over their love interests.  
As Kaito came up with Luchia's order, he asked, "What's up with them?"  
"Karen was curious about how Rina was doing in the human world." Luchia tried to explain, "But now, I don't know."  
"Guess Karen isn't the only one." Kaito pointed out to Hanon and Coco. When Luchia saw the scene going on between those two, she felt embarrassed.  
"This won't be good." she moaned. And Kaito felt inclined to agree, seeing how the two outside were beginning to make a scene.

At late afternoon, Maki had Kaito, Luchia, and Seira wait tables and had the others work in the kitchen to avoid them making a mess. Thankfully, Luchia and Seira managed to dodge Karen, Noelle, and Coco's inquisition. Unfortunately, that meant a lot of shouting and arguing coming from the five stationed in the kitchen. Kaito had just finished cleaning his table, when another guest came in.  
"Welcome." he greeted. But then he found that the new guest was Nikora from Pearl Piari.  
"Ah, Kaito." she returned, "Is Maki-san here?"  
"Yes. He is. Shall I take you to him?"  
"No thank you." As Nikora went over to the bar area, and Kaito went to Luchia and let her know she was here.  
Freaked out from the news, Luchia took Seira into the kitchen with her, and announced over the squabblers, "Onee-chan is here!" Instantly, the five girls silenced themselves. But they also became worried about Nikora being here. So they diligently went back to work without making a fuss.  
Wondering why Nikora was here, Luchia and Seira went to eavesdrop on her conversation.

"Maki-san, thank you for lending us some of your catch the other day." Nikora thanked.  
"Don't mention it. It's the least I could do after you helped advertise my shop." Maki returned. When Luchia looked over to the two, Nikora looked quite flustered. She knew Nikora really liked Maki, and vice versa. In fact, Maki even proposed to Nikora some time ago. But Nikora had refused, claiming she wasn't really ready for something like marriage.  
"You seem a little down Nikora-san." Maki noticed, "Did something happen?"  
"Actually, Luchia and her friends could be in trouble." Nikora explained, "And I want to protect them, but I'm just not sure I can do it right. I feel like I'm holding them against their own wills." Maki pondered what he was told as he cleaned one of his wine glasses. And while he did, Luchia and Seira began to understand Nikora's motives.  
Like Hippo, she was concerned with protecting them. Unlike Hippo, she was worried that what she did might be wrong.  
So Maki finally told her, "If you care so deeply for them, then at least let me help. You can't protect them on your own. Those girls are very free-spirited. So don't be afraid to let someone else be responsible too."  
"Maki-san." Nikora sighed dreamily. And Luchia couldn't help notice her blush a bit.

But then, a massive clatter of pots and pans arose from the kitchen. Trouble had begun to brew, again. Coco and Hanon were in each others faces about Nagisa, Karen was accusing Rina of assuming too much and kept countering by bringing up the idea that Rina was in love, while Noelle was trying to calm everyone down. Luchia and Seira pitched in, trying to settle the disputes down before they drew too much attention. The squabbling got so loud that even Kaito tried to break up the fights. It was then that everyone tripped from the clatter and fell through the kitchen doors.  
"Ow!" Luchia, Seira, and Kaito groaned, being on the bottom of the pile.  
"What is going on here?!" Nikora demanded, her hands on her hips. When all seven girls looked up at her, they knew they were caught.  
"Didn't I tell all of you that you were to never leave the hotel?!" she scolded.  
"But please, Onee-chan-"  
"No excuses Luchia! How could you be so selfish to just take off on your own?!"  
"But, Nikora-san, we only wanted-" Seira began.  
"They only wanted to help me manage the shop." Maki interceded, "They had come by, noticing that Kaito had his hands full working here. So they all decided to lend us their help."  
"That's right." Kaito added after getting up, "The cafe was swamped with people, and I was the only one working besides Maki-san. We needed the help."  
"Nikora-san, don't judge the girls harshly." Maki finished to calm Nikora, "They all have good intentions in their hearts. And if anything would have happened, Kaito and I would have been here for them." All was quiet after that. Even the customers waited in earnest to see how things would develop. Eventually, with a silent sigh, Nikora confronted the Mermaid Princesses.  
"Make sure nothing happens to you on the way back." she finally told them. The girls cheered with delight. Nikora was letting them stay.  
"Thank you, Onee-chan." Luchia gratefully replied.  
"Yes. Thank you!" the others pitched in. With that settled, Nikora thanked Maki for his help, and left. While Maki was left to ponder why she was so concerned for Luchia and her friends.

As Nikora made her way back to the hotel, Maki's words continued to carry in her head.  
 _What am I to do?_ she pondered. She trusted Maki a lot, and was willing to let the girls work at the beach house for as long as possible. But the danger still hung in the air.  
Looking out to the moonlit sea, she prayed, "Aqua Regina-sama, please tell me. Is there any way I can protect Luchia without burdening anyone else? What must I do to protect the Mermaid Princesses? Or am I unable to shelter them now?"  
"What is this you say about Mermaid Princesses?" came a voice. When Nikora found who it belonged to, she found Lady Bat, along with Linhua and Arara.  
"Water demons?!" she gasped.  
"So you were the one hiding the Mermaid Princesses from us." Linhua chuckled maliciously, "The guardian mermaid."  
"Hishki-sama told us to capture the Mermaid Princesses." Arara elaborated, "But all he needs is just one mermaid. And you will do quite nicely." The situation looked bleak. Nikora had no way to protect herself like Luchia and the others did. So instead, she ran back to Maki's beach house.  
"You can't escape." Lady Bat warned. And Arara commanded a new robot to capture Nikora.

Back at the beach house, everything had finally settled down. Hanon, Coco, Rina, and Karen had all forgiven each other and resumed working together. It was close to closing time, so everyone was busy cleaning up the place.  
As Luchia was wiping down one of the tables out on the balcony, Kaito came up to her and inquired, "What was Nikora-san talking about? Why did she want you to never leave Pearl Piari?"  
"It's because of Dr. Hishki." Luchia answered, "Ever since the attack on the North Pacific palace, Onee-chan and Hippo had been trying to keep us from being captured. They even called in Karen, Noelle, and Coco because we thought he knew about the other kingdoms."  
"So it was to protect you?" Kaito surmised. Luchia nodded in affirmation.

Just then, Nikora burst through the doors, startling the girls, Kaito, and Maki.  
"Nikora-san! What's wrong?!" Maki asked urgently.  
Before she could even answer, Luchia cried out, "Onee-chan! Behind you!" But it was too late. Mechanical tendrils wrapped around Nikora's waist, wrists, and ankles, and began carrying her away. Shocked by what had just happened, Maki took off after her. But he couldn't find where the mechanical tentacles had taken her.  
That is, until Luchia pointed out, "Look! Over there!" When everyone looked to where Luchia was pointing, They managed to glimpse Nikora being dragged underwater.  
"Nikora!" Maki called out to her. Then he leapt over the balcony railing and took off after her.  
"Let's go, everyone." Luchia suggested.

Underwater, the water demons were carting off their newest catch back to Dr. Hishki's base.  
"I can't believe how easy this was." Linhua pondered aloud.  
"I know. How could we have ever tried capturing those Mermaid Princesses when we just needed a mermaid all along?" Arara pointed out cheerfully. But Lady Bat didn't see how this was better.  
"Don't forget; our real targets are the Mermaid Princesses." she chastised, "This is simply to get the doctor what he wants." They stopped for a quick bit to take a look at their captured mermaid. Nikora tried to break out of the robot's grip (which turned out to be an octopus robot), but its tentacles had her bound tight.  
"Don't bother struggling." Arara told her, "It just makes it bind tighter." But Nikora just kept struggling. She was NOT going to let Dr. Hishki take her prisoner.  
The water demons were amused by her vain efforts, but it was cut short when Maki swam up to free her. Maki was working primarily on instinct, his mind focused on the task he had just undertaken. This mermaid that he was trying to save reminded him so much of Nikora, though he did not know why. Nikora was surprised when Maki had shown up, but she said nothing as he worked to unbind her. Before long, Maki managed to free her by going up to the robot's head and bashing on it a couple of times. But he was running short of breath, so he immediately started swimming for the surface after he did that. Desperate to protect him, Nikora helped Maki up for air.  
"Get back here!" Linhua ordered. The three tried to follow, but were blocked when Luchia and the others swam in their way.  
"We're not letting you hurt them anymore." Luchia told them.  
"It's us you wanted, so we won't keep you waiting any longer." Hanon added.  
"So you are back." Karen came in, remembering her encounter with at least one of the water demons, "Well then, it's time you went back to where you came from." The three water demons would have been proud of the opportunity to capture all seven Mermaid Princesses, except that they were already prepared to face them. Because the Mermaid Princesses had already begun to transform.

 _"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"  
"Purple Pearl Voice!"_ Karen's outfit was a white, short dress with some purple lace.  
 _"Indigo Pearl Voice!"_ Noelle's outfit was similar to Karen's, but indigo.  
 _"Yellow Pearl Voice!"_ Coco's outfit, on the other hand, was similar to Luchia's and Hanon's, yet was yellow.  
 _"Orange Pearl Voice!"_  
And once all seven of them had transformed into their second forms, the show could begin.  
"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!"

This time, all seven sung the full version of "Legend of Mermaid." their combined might instantly shattered the octo-robot that had taken Nikora earlier. And even bore into the dark beings before they had the chance to counter their singing.  
"How could this have happened?!" Lady Bat complained under the strain.  
"And when we were so close to bringing Hishki-sama his mermaid!" Arara cried out in agony.  
When the seven had finished, they called out, "Love Shower Pitch! How about an encore?" But the three water demons had disappeared long before they had finished the song.

Meanwhile, Maki had broken through the surface of the water, taking in a massive gulp of fresh air. But Nikora stayed submerged just below. Having regained his breathing, Maki took another big breath and plunged under to find the mermaid her had saved. He found her, swimming away to the depths.  
"W-Wait!" he called to her. And he gave chase. However, he was running out of air faster this time. But he held on and continued after her. Nikora wanted to get away from Maki, and avoid him knowing both sides of her. But his persistence worried her as he struggled to swim while running out of air.  
Before that happened, Nikora carried Maki to the surface for air. Once they broke through, Maki began coughing from almost inhaling water.  
"You must stop following me." she told him. He didn't respond. Rather, he was confused and in awe at the being he was seeing. "You must not come after me." Nikora continued, "If you don't stop, the dangers that follow me will hurt you too."  
"Dangers?" Maki questioned, "What do you mean? What dangers?" But Nikora didn't asnwer.  
Instead, she replied, "Farewell, Maki-san." And she dove underwater, tears streaming down her face. The way the mermaid said his name made Maki ponder. Who was this mermaid? And how did she know him?  
But before he could go after her again, Maki heard Kaito call out to him. Then he saw the raft he was using, accompanied by Luchia.  
"Maki-san, are you alright?" Kaito inquired as he helped him in.  
"I'm alright." Maki replied. But in all honesty, he wasn't sure he was.

Back at Pearl Piari, the seven mermaid princesses and Meru faced Nikora and Hippo, expecting some kind of punishment for disobeying them.  
"We're really sorry, Onee-chan." Luchia started.  
"Yes. Very sorry. Please forgive us." Seira added.  
"The seven of you acted recklessly." Hippo chastised, "If things hadn't turned out the way they did, you all would be that human scientist's prisoners."  
"Although," Nikora interceded, "I doubt that keeping you all here is a very good idea. You may be Mermaid Princesses, but you are capable of taking care of yourselves."  
"What are you saying, Nikora-san?" Hippo asked.  
"So, feel free to be yourselves. Spend whatever time you can while we are in the human world. But, you must be careful of that Dr. Hishki." Much to Hippo's shock, the girls all cheered at their newly earned freedom.  
But in the midst of it, Luchia couldn't help thinking about Nikora and Maki. She figured this change in her was partly due to her feelings toward him.  
 _Onee-chan,_ Luchia thought, _if you love Maki-san, then why do you keep him away?_ She was the only on with those thoughts that night.

 **At long last, we have the remaining Mermaid Princesses joining the gang: Karen, Noelle, and Coco. Man, it definitely did not go smoothly with either them or Nikora. But, all's well that ends well, aye? Stay tuned, and please answer my poll if you really want this or my other fanfic to be posted more often.**

 **Til next time,  
Encore wa ika ga?**


	8. The Captured Mermaid

**Howdy do pardners! We're back with another chapter for Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo! This one focuses a bit more on Nagisa and Hanon, and Nagisa may grow closer to discovering who that aqua mermaid from ch. 3 could be. *snicker*. This should be interesting.**

 **Anyways, I do not own Mermaid Melody or its content. Everything of it belongs to its appropriate owners.**

 **Also, the poll for this and the other story is still up. If you haven't voted yet, and you want this story to be posted more, go ahead and vote now.**

 **Now, enjoy.**

It was late one evening while Hanon and Nagisa cruised along the coast to Pearl Piari. Their tandem bike squeaked as Nagisa strained to pedal.  
"Nagisa, are you sure you don't need to rest?" Hanon asked in concern, seeing a slight bit of strain on Nagisa.  
But he shook his head and replied, "I'll be alright. Don't worry about me Hanon."  
"When you tell me that, then I do worry." Hanon huffed. Nagisa just chuckled in his mind.

Before long, they arrived at the front porch of the hotel.  
As Hanon dismounted, Nagisa asked, "Want to go to the aquarium this weekend?"  
"The aquarium?" Hanon questioned.  
"Yeah, for the project we're all supposed to be doing. Meru said you guys had to research an aquatic animal and write a paper on it. I figured going to the aquarium could be great to brainstorm some ideas." Hanon did ponder the idea of going to the aquarium with Nagisa. The only thing was, she hadn't been told about any research project they had to do. Even so, going to the aquarium was risky during these times. If something happened while she was there, Dr. Hishki would do anything to reveal her secret to other people. And the aquarium was the perfect place to do it, if he managed to get his hands on her. Still, she couldn't just turn Nagisa down after he made the offer.  
So she replied, "Let me think about it, and I'll tell you tomorrow."  
"Alright." Nagisa responded, sounding somewhat disappointed. And he pedaled away. It hurt Hanon to push Nagisa away like that, but she decided that it was for the best. So she went inside for the night.

The next day at school was when the teacher gave them the news.  
"Everyone, you will be doing a project on an aquatic animal. You are each to select an aquatic animal to research, then present it to the class in two weeks. You are allowed to research at the library or go to the aquarium to study, but you must choose a real marine animal."  
"Sensei," a student interjected, "Can we work with partners on this project?"  
"I will allow it." the teacher replied, "But then you must each choose an individual subject to present." The class agreed to this, and with it class ended.

As Hanon was finishing packing up her things, Luchia came over and pointed out, "Hey, Hanon, look over at Rina." When she did, Hanon saw that Rina was swamped by peers, girl and boy, wanting to partner up with her on the assignment. Rina tried to convince them that she wasn't interested in partnering up, but her "fans" didn't quite seem to get the message.  
"Rina is still as popular as ever." Hanon muttered.  
"I was thinking, we should partner up too." Luchia suggested, "Since we're mermaids, this should be easy."  
"I think I'll pass." Hanon replied, "If I helped you, you wouldn't learn anything." Luchia was about to retort when Kaito came over to her.  
"Luchia, want to partner up on this?" he asked, "There's a small reef out somewhat with lots of sea life. We can probably ace this project if we research there."  
"Of course, I'd be glad to partner with you!" Luchia answered cheerfully. Having finished packing up, Hanon left the two lovebirds as she began to ponder how to do this project.

Along the way home to Pearl Piari, Meru and Seira had caught up to Hanon.  
"Hanon-sama, what are you going to do for your project?" Meru asked excitedly.  
"I haven't given it much thought yet. We just got the news today." Hanon told her.  
"Well, Seira-sama and I are going to research the animals from her kingdom in the Indian Ocean." Meru told Hanon, "We may even get to go there and see them ourselves. Seira-sama told me we would."  
"I didn't exactly say it like that Meru." Seira sheepishly explained, "And please, call me Seira." The two continued to bicker over that little issue all the way back home. But along the way, Hanon reconsidered Nagisa's offer to go to the aquarium. After that, she made her decision.

"Alright, we'll meet at the entrance Saturday at 1 o'clock." Nagisa told Hanon over the phone.  
"Okay. You better not be late this time." Hanon chastised.  
"Don't worry, I won't. Bye." and he hung up.  
As Hanon hung up on her end, she sighed exasperatedly. "He tells me not to worry, but I can't help but worry." She mumbled.  
"Worry about what?" came Coco from behind her.  
"Coco! Don't sneak up on me like that!" Hanon freaked.  
"Sorry Hanon. But you looked really serious during the whole conversation. So I was naturally curious." Coco reasoned.  
"Well stay out of things that aren't your business!" And Hanon went up to her room to get away from Coco's prying attention.  
Settling herself into a relaxing bath, Hanon sighed contently, relaxing in its warm waters. At least, that was the case until Hippo barged in.  
Freaked out by the sudden intrusion, Hanon splashed Hippo and demanded, "Get out! I'm taking a bath!"  
"What are you doing, Hanon-san?!" Hippo retorted, "It's only me!"  
"That's no excuse! Barging in is a perverted crime Hippo!"  
"Not unless it is to tell you something important."  
"It doesn't matter! Get OUT!" With that, Hippo hastily left Hanon to relax in the bath without any more arguments.  
"Geez! Everyone is bugging me today." Hanon pouted.

That Saturday afternoon, Hanon arrived at the aquarium at 1 o'clock as she and Nagisa had agreed. And not a second later did she hear Nagisa call out to her. When they finally met up, Hanon noticed that there was a small group of people surrounding what looked to be a tour guide. Not only that, but Nagisa seemed to be a part of this group too.  
"We're gonna travel with this tour group, so that if we find something you want to study we'll know about it." Nagisa reasoned. So Hanon reluctantly agreed to the idea.

It was slow going for the entire tour. The tour guide spent excessively long amounts of time going over the aquarium's systems and habitats more than she did discussing the life in each tank they passed. Even Nagisa began to doubt his idea more and more as they progressed.  
But it wasn't until they reached the balcony overlooking the largest tank that the mood of the tour began to shift.  
"Over here, we have one of our newer exhibits. We call it the 'Underwater Experience.'" the tour guide announced to the group, "It's still under construction. But when it is finished, it will provide guests with a chance to actually swim with some of our various sea life alongside a trained staff member." When Hanon and Nagisa looked over the railing, it was hard to see this place as ' still under construction.' The tank was already filled somewhat with sea water, and no equipment was being used.  
"If you will follow me, we will see what has been completed in this particular exhibit." the guide ushered. Nagisa quickly took off after the group, while Hanon followed shortly behind. But then, someone shoved Hanon over the side and into the tank.

Immediately upon entering the water, Hanon transformed into her mermaid self. She wasn't hurt, but she wasn't safe either. Inside the tank, she saw that there was a massive window nearby for visitors to view inside. Thankfully, no one saw her transform. But a little kid did try to point her out to his parents. Hastily, Hanon hid behind some rocks to avoid others spotting her. That was when she noticed a little more about her surroundings. The whole tank was a mixture of environments, with coral and sea life scattered as far as she could see. Much of the sea life was familiar to Hanon, and then there were some parts that were unfamiliar.  
 _Amazing._ Hanon wondered in awe, _This place is so amazing._ But then she noticed the glass bubble in the center, and spotted someone coming up from the stairs inside. Someone was coming up! Probably even the tour group. Frantically, Hanon hid away in a cave opening in one of the larger rocks, scrunching herself into a ball to hide her tail. But as she sat in the space, she worried about how she was going to escape.

After the group ended their visit to the new exhibit, Nagisa was led back to the entrance as the tour guide sent everyone off. But he couldn't find Hanon among his group.  
Before he left, Nagisa asked the tour guide, "Excuse me, have you seen my friend anywhere? I can't find her. I think she may be lost."  
"I'm sorry, young sir. But I haven't seen anyone get separated from the group." she replied, "Maybe you might have missed her leaving or something." After that, the tour guide ushered Nagisa out, claiming that the aquarium would be closing soon. Even with much protesting, Nagisa was forced out as the place closed up. But maybe he did miss Hanon leaving with him. Maybe she had already headed home without him. Figuring that there was only one way to find out, Nagisa headed for Pearl Piari.

Back at the hotel, Luchia and Rina were recounting their different adventures today working on their class project. Luchia kept recounting how romantic it had been working alongside Kaito while studying the marine life at the reef.  
"You sure Kaito's not just using to get an easy A?" Rina remarked slyly.  
"No way! Kaito would never do that." Luchia defended. That was when someone came into the lobby. "Welcome back Hanon. How was it with Nagisa?" But the person Luchia was speaking to was Nagisa.  
"Luchia, is Hanon back yet?" he asked.  
"No. Wasn't she with you?"  
"She was. But then we got separated." That was when Nagisa began to panic. "Oh no! Where is she?! What if someone kidnapped her! Or maybe she ditched me during the tour! Or..!"  
"Calm down." Rina told him, "We can help you find Hanon. But you need to calm down first." After a few deep breaths, Nagisa finally calmed down.  
"If you lost sight of Hanon at the aquarium," Karen came in, "Then that is where we should look for her first."  
"But how? The aquarium's closed." Nagisa reasoned.  
"Leave that to us." Noelle beamed, "I've got an idea."

Once Hanon figured there was no one around, she left her hiding place and began looking around the tank for a way out. Immediately, she saw a set of rungs embedded in the wall, forming a ladder. Figuring that would be her best bet, Hanon swam over and started to climb. Almost immediately though, the first two rungs she grabbed dislodged from their place and she fell back into the water. Feeling defeated, Hanon sank to the bottom.  
"What am I going to do?" she asked dejectedly, "I don't know how to get out of here. And if I don't get out of here, I'll be stuck here forever." She imagined living a life trapped in a tank, on display for everyone to see. But she shook herself out of the trance, and told herself, "No way! I will find a way out of here. One way or another." Determined, Hanon began searching her imprisonment once more.

Outside the main entrance, Luchia, Nagisa, and the others stood in front of the gate leading into the aquarium.  
"Are you sure about this, Karen?" Rina questioned.  
"Of course. It is absolutely fool proof." Karen replied. She, Noelle, and Coco were all dressed like ninjas. With skin-tight, black suits and masks that hid everything but their eyes.  
"These kinds of humans were known for sneaking into places and not being detected." Noelle explained, "They were called Kunoichi, female ninjas."  
"And tonight, we shall bring out the power of the kunoichi to sneak in and find Hanon." Karen proclaimed. The other three were not convinced. But they had no time to argue as the three kunoichi took off for the complex.  
"Here we go." Rina groaned.

The group snuck in through the ventilation shaft, and eventually found their way inside. But their entrance was less than silent, or graceful. The whole group tumbled down a chute, right into the foyer. Karen, Noelle, and Coco pancaked to the ground, while Luchia, Rina, and Nagisa landed on top of them.  
"Ow! So much for sneaking in." Luchia groaned from the impact.  
"But at least we are inside now." Rina pointed out. After everyone had recovered from the fall, Karen told everyone to split up into groups of two to search for Hanon. Nagisa told them that the last place he saw Hanon was at the "Underwater Experience" exhibit. So he and Noelle headed that way. Luchia and Rina paired up and took off for another set of exhibits, and Karen and Coco took off in the opposite direction.

Nagisa and Noelle did their best to remain in the shadows, avoiding security cameras and guards whenever they could. After a little bit of searching, the duo came across a window that looked into the new exhibit. But then they heard voices coming from their right. Security guards! Noelle took off in their direction, hopefully to distract them somehow. After a couple of minutes, Nagisa heard a faint 'clink' in the voices direction. Then the voices began to fade as they went to investigate the noise. Nagisa sighed with relief, and looked back at the tank just in time to spot something that took his breath away.  
Inside the exhibit, swimming around like she was lost, was a mermaid. And not just any mermaid. It was the one Nagisa met that one night. The mermaid also noticed him, and Hanon swam down to the window.  
"It's you." Nagisa gasped quietly.  
 _Yes, it is me._ he heard her speak through his mind.  
"But, how did you get in there?" Nagisa asked, "Never mind. Who are you?"  
 _Please, there's no time. You have to help me get out of here.  
_ "But how? What can I do?"  
 _I'm not sure. But if I'm still here by morning, we may never get another chance._ It was hard for Nagisa to argue with that. Still, it wasn't going to be easy to find a way to rescue this mermaid. But then, he got an idea.  
"Wait there. I know what to do." he assured. Then he snuck off for the overhead balcony.

Reaching the balcony above the tank, Nagisa spotted an emergency fire hose nearby. He retrieved it, then began lowering it into the tank. As he did, he could hear voices coming closer to where he was. Security guards!  
As soon as the end of the hose reached the water, Hanon surfaced as he told her, "Grab the hose. I'll pull you up." But Hanon hesitated. If she got pulled up out of the water, Nagisa might witness her transform. Then her secret would be revealed, and she would turn into bubbles. But at the same time, if she didn't take the escape Nagisa had for her, she would become a part of the exhibit, or worse.  
"Hurry! They're getting closer!" Nagisa shouted.  
"Well well, look who returned." someone spoke from behind Nagisa. When he turned around, he found the tour guide from earlier standing in the breeze way. Before Nagisa could comprehend what was going on, the tour guide tossed off her disguise, and revealed herself to be Lady Bat.  
"I guess this Mermaid Princess attracts more trouble than she is worth."  
"Nagisa, what is going one?" Hanon called out to him.  
"You're that bat lady that attacked her before!" Nagisa gritted.  
"It's Lady Bat, little boy!" Lady Bat replied begrudgingly, "Remember it well." Then she charged him so fast that Nagisa had no time to dodge. Shoved over the railing, Nagisa landed on Hanon who was holding the hose to be pulled up. the resulting impact knocked her and Nagisa unconscious. And they sank to the bottom.

"So you're back." came Karen's voice, "Why did you do that?"  
"Well, I'm here to catch the mermaid princess." Lady Bat answered, "And get back at that boy for last time." It was then that she recognized the voice that was speaking. When she turned around, she spotted the five other Mermaid Princesses. When she did, they began to transform into their Pichi Pichi forms.

 ** _"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"  
"Purple Pearl Voice!"  
"Indigo Pearl Voice!"  
"Yellow Pearl Voice!"  
_**  
As the gravity of the situation began to sink in, Lady Bat exclaimed, "Crud! How did this happen to me?!  
"Hurting a boy out of revenge is unforgivable." Noelle scolded.  
"We'll purify your darkness with our song." Rina added.  
"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!"

Meanwhile, at the bottom of the tank, Nagisa and Hanon began to come around. Nagisa was short on breath, but he felt incapable of moving. It was like all his energy had vanished.  
"Are you alright, Nagisa?" Hanon inquired. All Nagisa could do was nod as a response. Hanon smiled, and gripped his hand as assurance that she was alright too. With a sudden rushing feeling, Nagisa shot up from the contact.  
As Hanon got up, Nagisa asked her, "Who are you?"  
But Hanon put her finger to his lips to silence him, and told him, "Don't talk. Save your air." Whatever came over them afterward, the two leaned in so close that, pretty soon, they kissed. Hanon had meant to give Nagisa air, but the moment betrayed her original intention. Afterwards, Nagisa fainted and drifted into Hanon's lap. Though slightly embarrassed, Hanon held him in her arms as she waited for her friends to rescue her.

"Love Shower Pitch!" the five Mermaid Princesses called out as they finished their song.  
"Curse you, Mermaid Princesses! Lady Bat scolded, "And I was so close too!" Then she disappeared.  
"I guess she didn't want an encore after all." Coco surmised. The five shared a quick laugh, then went to look into the tank Hanon was supposed to be in.  
"So how are we gonna get Hanon and Nagisa out of there?" Rina asked the group.  
"The water's too far below to reach them without getting trapped ourselves." Karen pondered, "We'd need a really long ladder to reach them." But then, Luchia spotted the hose Nagisa had intended to use as rope in the water, and she saw the rest of it right next to them.  
"I've got it!" she beamed.

"Nagisa! Nagisa!" came Hanon's voice. And as Nagisa awoke, he found Hanon holding him in her arms. Apparently, they were on the beach just a little past the aquarium.  
"Hanon." he murmured.  
As he began to sit up, Hanon sighed, "I'm glad you're alright."  
"Where were you?!" Nagisa scorned, "You went missing after we visited the aquarium! How did you get lost like that?"  
"What are you saying?!" Hanon returned, annoyed at Nagisa's accusation, "You left me behind and I lost sight of the tour group! You were the one who got lost, not me!"  
"At least I stayed with the tour group!" Then the two angrily turned their backs to each other. But Hanon's anger quickly dissipated, as she remembered what happened when they were trapped in the aquarium. Just the thought alone set her heart racing.  
"Did you find what you would do your project on?" Nagisa asked.  
"I did. Thank you, Nagisa." Having settled down, Nagisa helped Hanon up and took her home.

As Nagisa ventured on to his home, he continued to ponder over the events that happened that night. His second encounter with the blue mermaid was completely strange to him. But each time he pondered who she was, Hanon's image kept shoving into his mind and replacing the mermaid's image. But then, the two sort of merged.  
 _It isn't possible. Is it?_ Nagisa thought, _But if it is, I want to find out. Someday, I want to find that mermaid again._

 **Well, how muy interesante, eh? That could have been disastorous, ending up caged in the aquarium like some kind of animal. Whelp, till next time.**

 **Encore wa ika ga?**


	9. Treasure of the Heart

**Sorry I'm late. But we're back to Mermaid Melody.**

 **As always, I do not own Mermaid Melody. All property belongs to its appropriate owners.**

 **Also, I will be putting up a new poll to see about your thoughts. Check out my profile for what it is.**

 **And now, enjoy.**

Chapter 9: Treasure of the Heart

At Maki's beach cafe, the mermaid princesses and Kaito were busy getting orders made and passing them out to their tables. The restaurant was becoming quite packed, that a huge line started to form outside.  
"Luchia, where's my order?" Kaito demanded.  
"Coming Kaito!" Luchia called back, finishing the food she was preparing.  
"Hanon, table two is waiting to take their order." Maki ushered.  
"Got it." Hanon responded, skating out to her table. All in all, this was the busiest day of all.  
At closing time, everyone was slumped everywhere from exhaustion.  
"Today was a nightmare." Karen moaned.  
"I don't think I've ever been so busy in all my life." Rina griped alongside her.  
"My everything aches!" Noelle complained.  
"I feel like I just did a marathon." Kaito inputted.  
"Good work everyone." Maki thanked everyone, "You're all free to go home if you wish." No one argued. Picking themselves up, the girls headed out for Pearl Piari.  
"Oh Kaito," Maki called, "Before you go home, can you pick up some things for me at the store? We used up most of our supplies today."  
"Sure thing." Kaito answered.

The next morning, Kaito was sleeping in from his work the other night. And in his sleep, he dreamt of resting on the beach along with Luchia. Luchia was in her mermaid form, even though she was out of the water. The two gazed into each others eyes, and were about to kiss.  
That was when the doorbell woke Kaito up.  
Still groggy, Kaito answered the intercom, "Hello. Doumoto residence."  
"Ah, Kaito. It's Masahiro. Rina's friend." came Masahiro, "May I come in?"  
"Yeah. Let me get dressed first." When Kaito went to open the door, he found not only Masahiro standing at the entrance, but Nagisa too.  
"What's going on? Why are you both here?" Kaito asked, puzzled by the arrival of the two boys.  
"My apologies. I would have contacted you sooner, but I thought it better to tell you in person." Masahiro admitted, "You see-"  
"We're going on a treasure hunt!" Nagisa interrupted.  
"Treasure hunt?" Kaito quizzed.  
Once in the living room, Masahiro explained what Nagisa blabbed about.  
"I was reading up on mermaid legends when I came across some interesting stuff. There is a rumor that there might be mermaid treasure buried out at sea. No one knows if it is true, and no one has been able to find it. But the legend is that a mermaid hid a vast treasure long ago from some pirates. The details are a little sketchy, and there isn't much to go on. But I figured it might be worth a shot."  
Sounds interesting." Kaito commented, "But why tell me this?  
"Because I want some help." Masahiro continued, "I know I can't find it on my own, so I needed to ask someone for help."  
"You should've told a treasure hunter this. It would be too dangerous for us to search for it."  
"I already tried that. But no one would believe me. That's why I am here. Please, I need your help." What Masahiro was hiding was that since this treasure was a mermaid treasure, he might encounter the green mermaid he met before. That was his hope.  
Kaito was doubtful about an idea. But if Masahiro did go through with this, there was more danger than he anticipated. Kaito could bet the water demons would be involved too, looking for Luchia and the others.  
So he replied, "Alright. I'll join you."  
"Excellent!" Masahiro beamed, "We'll meet at the docks today a noon. I'll prepare everything by then."  
"And I'm coming too." Nagisa proudly proclaimed. Now Kaito was convinced they would be heading for trouble.

A little before noon, Kaito told Luchia, Hanon, and Rina about the treasure hunt he was going on with Masahiro.  
"A mermaid treasure?" Rina questioned after he finished.  
"That's so amazing!" Hanon beamed, "Think about all the jewels that could be there."  
"But Kaito, why are you telling us this?" Luchia asked.  
"I'm not sure that this rumor won't attract the water demons or Dr. Hishki to it." he explained, "So I want to ask guys to follow us, and help us if we run into any trouble."  
"We will." Rina answered, "There's no doubt that you might need us."  
"Yay! I can't wait to go looking for treasure!"  
"Hanon, we're just going to be following Hamasaki-san." Luchia tried to calm her friend down. With that agreed upon, Kaito left for the docks.

Upon arriving, Kaito saw that Masahiro was geared up for deep-sea scuba diving. He had on a black wetsuit, an air tank, fins, and a scuba mask. Nagisa was on his boat, struggling to get his wet suit on.  
"Looks like you know how to prepare." Kaito remarked.  
"Well I figured we would do some deep-sea diving, so I know to be prepared." Masahiro told them, "Well then, shall we?" And they jetted off for the mysterious treasure.  
As they did, Luchia, Hanon, and Rina kept a respectful distance behind so that they could tail them. Although Rina agreed to Kaito's plan, part of her didn't like that Masahiro was hunting after treasure.  
 _What is Masahiro up to?_ she pondered, _Why would he be doing this?_ That thought alone drove her to keep up and discover why Masahiro was doing this.  
Masahiro stopped the boat over the supposed site of where the treasure should be. Then he went over to the other boys and let them about how they would find the treasure.  
"According to legend, the entrance to the treasure will be marked by a picture of a trident." he told them, "So we need to look for a trident."  
"Alright! Let's do this!" Nagisa beamed eagerly. And he jumped right into the water. Masahiro shortly followed, fitting his mask and breather on properly. With a reluctant sigh, Kaito soon followed suite.  
Before they proceeded to finding the treasure, Masahiro told the other two to stay close to him and follow his instructions. Once agrred upon, They began diving deeper into the ocean. Unbeknownst to them, Luchia, Hanon, and Rina followed along, hiding behind any reefs they could use. For a while, it was easy going. No water demons popped out, nor did Dr. Hishki suddenly arrive in some brand new mech to capture the mermaid princesses. But that simply made Rina feel uneasy.  
After a bit of diving, Nagisa spotted the picture of a trident on one of the reefs.  
"Now what do we do?" he asked Masahiro.  
"Well, the legends say that there should be some sort of the reaction that will open a path tot he treasure." Masahiro explained, "Now we need to figure out what that reaction is." But when Kaito tried to examine the image, the trident glowed all of a sudden. Then, a cave opened up at the base of the reef. So the three proceeded further into the quest, entering the mysterious cave. Rina and the others were puzzled that the cave reacted to them the way it did. But they needed to keep an eye on Masahiro's group. So they followed, just as the cave sealed up once more.  
Arriving too late to follow, however, were the three water demons: Lady Bat, Linhua, and Arara.  
"Aw! We missed them!" Arara pouted.  
"It does not matter." Lady Bat pointed out, "We'll simply cause the cave to crumble on them, then retrieve the Mermaid Princesses afterwards."  
"What a beautiful plan." Linhua complemented, "I cannot wait to get started."

Inside the cave, Kaito and the boys were very surprised to find themselves in a cave here. The walls looked to have been carved into by someone, possibly mermaids. As they proceeded, Masahiro felt the anticipation in himself grow. Not for finding the treasure though, but rather for something else. If this treasure was indeed mermaid treasure, maybe he might meet the mermaid he had tried to protect. He wanted to know; did she have something in common with Rina? Why was Rina's face always appearing when he thought of that green mermaid? These were answers he just had to know.  
But then, the cave suddenly shook.  
"What the-" Kaito spoke, "What is that?"  
"An earthquake?!" Nagisa brought up. Then, the whole cavern began rumbling. No one was knew what was going on. Even the mermaids following behind were baffled by what was happening.  
"What's happening?!" Hanon cried out.  
"Is it a sea quake?" Luchia asked.  
"No. This isn't a normal quake." Rina reasoned with a scowl, "It must be them."

Outside, above the reef that the two groups entered, Lady Bat and her accomplices were singing their songs. The unified power of the three dark songs, focused on the caves entrance, made a part of the reef crumble and shake.  
"This will be too easy." Lady Bat smirked, "A fitting and sweet revenge."  
"Yes. How ugly things like them have defeated beautiful beings like us baffles me." Linhua added.  
"Now they'll get a chance to experience a bitter defeat." Arara chuckled.  
"I won't let that happen!" came Seira's voice. Then, she and the three other Mermaid Princesses appeared behind the water demon trio.  
"Crud!" Lady Bat exclaimed.  
"When did you get here?!" Arara complained.  
"You didn't think we wouldn't try to find out what Luchia was up to, did you?" Karen told them, "Now it's our turn to send you three clowns packing." And with that, the four mermaids transformed into their Pichi Pichi forms.  
"Purple Pearl Voice!"  
"Indigo Pearl Voice!"  
"Yellow Pearl Voice!"  
"Orange Pearl Voice!"  
Once they were in their second form, they called out, "Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!" The song they sung this time was, "Starlight." And, like always, the three water demons were unable to bear or counter their power.  
"And it was all going so beautifully!" Linhua screamed.  
"I really hate this song!" Arara cried out.  
When they were done, the four called out, "Love Shower, Pitch! How about an encore?"  
"Forget it! We're leaving!" Lady Bat grimaced. And the three water demons disappeared.

Meanwhile, inside the cave, the shaking finally began to settle. But it was then that a huge boulder began to fall from the ceiling, onto Rina.  
Seeing it fall, Luchia cried out, "Rina, look out!" But it was too late. The boulder descended onto Rina, and pinned her tail. Rina struggled to pull herself from under the rock, but it was too heavy and wouldn't budge. She screamed out in agony while her friends tried to remove the rock.  
"Hang on." they heard someone assure. When Rina looked up, she saw Masahiro make his way over to them, along with Nagisa and Kaito. Combining their efforts, the boys and mermaids managed to lift the boulder just enough so Rina could slip out from under. But because Rina's tail was injured, she had a hard time swimming. So she set herself against the cave wall, while she examined where she was hurt. Where the rock pinned her had left a huge bruise mark. Rina tried to feel how the area was hurt, but it flared with pain the moment her fingers even glanced the spot.  
"Here, let me help." Masahiro offered. The others watched as he investigated the bruised spot. His investigation caused Rina's tail to roar out in pain. But she bore with it, knowing Masahiro was assessing the damage done.  
When he thought he had seen enough, he told everyone, "The bones are broken. I'm gonna need a splint and some bandages to brace it."  
"I'll get some bandages from the boat's first aid kit." Kaito volunteered.  
"I'll find something to make a splint with." Luchia offered. And they took off to get the supplies needed. Masahiro instructed Hanon and Nagisa to keep Rina's tail elevated. Then he requested Rina to remain calm, and avoid hyperventilating. Rina was glad Masahiro was there to help her through this predicament. Enduring the pain from her injury was using a lot of her energy. But she kept calm, and let Masahiro help her through the trial.  
Before long, Kaito and Luchia returned with the supplies needed to make the splint. Masahiro went to work immediately, binding the injured area between the two splint pieces. In no time at all, the splint was finished. it was weird for Rina to have it on her tail, but it helped make the injury more bearable.  
"Thank you, Masahiro." Rina spoke.  
"How... do you know my name?" Masahiro inquired, startled that this mermaid knew who he was.  
"I overheard one of your friends say your name when we came across your boat. You were talking about finding a mermaid treasure."  
"We were. But, I'm not anymore. I already found the treasure I was looking for." Masahiro gripped Rina's hand, feeling satisfied that his search was a success.  
"But, don't you want to see what the real treasure is?" Rina chuckled, "After all, your friends came all this way to find it. You don't want to disappoint them, or me, by ending the search now, do you?" Masahiro agreed that ending the search prematurely would be a big waste, and that he had promised to find it with Kaito and Nagisa. Helping to lift Rina up, Masahiro led the group further into the cave.  
After some swimming, the cave mouth opened up into a massive cavern, filled to the brim with gold and jewels.  
"Amazing! So amazing!" Nagisa and Hanon beamed in delight.  
But before they could touch a single piece of treasure, Masahiro told them, "Stop! The legend says that the mermaids who hid this treasure booby-trapped the whole cavern. We can't take any of this." Disappointed, the two eager treasure hunters returned to the group.  
It was then that Rina pointed out, "Everyone! Look over there!" Sitting on a throne of coral and amethyst, was an old fashioned portrait depicting seven sailors, each with a mermaid resting in their laps. Each pairing wore a particular color: pink, aquamarine, green, orange, yellow, purple, and indigo. They were the seven colors of the seven Mermaid Princesses. In fact, each mermaid had a pendant just like Luchia and her friends did.  
"Incredible!" Kaito remarked at it. But then he and the others noticed some writing on the bottom of the portrait.

 _Mermaid Princesses,_ Rina read aloud, _if you see this message, you've proven the legends wrong like we have. All our lives, we were told never to love humans. If any man knew our secret, we would turn to bubbles. But that is no longer true. The seven of us fell in love with some pirates. Together, we stole the treasure from their captain, and fled to the sea. Knowing our lives would be in danger, we made this sanctuary.  
Our love prevailed in the end. No one ever found out about us and our secret lives lived in these caverns. Of course, we still upheld our duties as Mermaid Princesses. But we also live lives with our lovers as well. Now our legacy falls to you. The only ones who can see this portrait are those who are in love with a human. The same for the human to be in love with a mermaid. We request, defy the legends once more. For love is the treasure of the heart.  
_  
The six of them felt stunned at what they had just heard. The fact that there were mermaids from long ago who fell in love with humans. And their message asking the Mermaid Princesses to defy the legends was completely unheard of. Even the boys were quite astonished by it.  
"This must be the real mermaid treasure." Masahiro finally spoke to break the silence, "None of this other stuff mattered to them. The real treasure is this picture."  
"Yes! It just has to be." Luchia inputted.  
"So they went through all the trouble for all this other treasure for what they truly valued." Kaito thought aloud. And almost as if on instinct, each pair looked to each other as if to confirm it. But there could be no doubt among any of them that they had strong feelings for each other. Removing his breathing apparatus, Kaito inched his face closer to Luchia's, until they were kissing.  
"Uh, Kaito?" Nagisa questioned. But then he saw Masahiro and Rina do the same thing. And looking at Hanon, Nagisa fell into the same pattern. And all three shared their feelings among a cavern of gold.

Once the three treasure hunters returned to Masahiro's boat, they coasted their way back to shore. Nagisa and Masahiro could not help but feel confused. They felt like they really liked the mermaids they met, but at the same time they loved their girlfriends. But Kaito's conscience was clear, for he knew that the mermaids the other two loved were closer than they thought.  
 _Someday,_ he thought to himself, _I hope they will discover what I did. That these new faces are ones they've known all along._

 __Meanwhile, Karen and the others sat waiting for their friends at Pearl Piari. They were caught off-guard when Luchia and Hanon came in carrying Rina, who was still in mermaid form.  
"Rina!" Noelle gasped.  
"What happened?!" Karen asked urgently.  
"Rina got trapped under a boulder while we followed Kaito. She didn't want to risk transforming back because of her injury." Distressed,, Nikora helped the girls take Rina upstairs, and rested her in a bathtub. Once there, Nikora, Taki, and Hippo tended to healing the injury.  
"She is lucky." Taki spoke, "Broken bones are easier to mend." Taki mixed up some medicine with her herbs, and fed it to Rina. "There. Now all she needs is some rest." Taki informed everyone, "She will be fine before long." After that, Nikora escorted the girls outside, desiring to know what Luchia and Hanon had been up to that allowed Rina to be hurt.  
Once they left, Rina whispered, "Defy the legends. Maybe it is possible for Masahiro to find out the real me. I wonder." And she fell asleep, with the image of the mermaid portrait still fresh in her mind.

 **Oh ho ho! What an interesting development. Will Nagisa and Masahiro figure it out? They're getting very close.**

 **So again, check out that poll I'm putting up. I could use the feedback.**


	10. Purple Heart Dilemma

**If you thought I was gonna neglect the other mermaid princesses and not let them have their own love lives, better think again. Cause now we get to see one particular mermaid rekindle that very spark. Hehe.**

 **Again, I do not own Mermaid Melody. (Just in case that hasn't been made clear for the umpteenth time).**

 **Enjoy.**

Chapter 10: Purple Heart Dilemma

A bright and sunny afternoon greeted Karen as she went down with Noelle and Coco to sunbathe at the beach. Luchia and the others were all at school, so they decided to take the opportunity to get away from the stresses Nikora had planned for them.  
"Ah, the sun feels just right, doesn't it?" Coco sighed in delight.  
"Too true." Noelle commented, "Today feels perfect."  
After setting up, all three girls were lying on their beach towels, catching a good amount of rays. At least until,  
"Aw! We forgot the food!" Coco whined.  
"The food?" Noelle quizzed, adjusting her sunglasses.  
"The food I worked really hard to make last night. It took me nearly forever to make it."  
With a reluctant sigh, Karen offered, "I'll find it for you. I shouldn't be long." Then she took off on her newly-acquired errand.

Once back at Pearl Piari, Karen went to work sifting through the mounds of other food to find Coco's prepared food. But to her, it was like finding a needle in a haystack. Everything looked so alike, it was hard to really discern which food was the kitchen's, and which was for them.  
"Geez Coco." she muttered under her breath, "Why didn't you just put the food somewhere where we could find it." During her search, Karen opened a cupboard that was stacked rather profusely. When she opened the cabinet, everything came tumbling down on top of her.  
After the mess finally settled, Karen popped out of the messy pile and whined, "Coco!" She knew her friend was still unaccustomed to living in the human world, but the least she could do was learn. Luckily, she found the picnic basket with the food.  
But as she grabbed it, someone in the foyer spoke, "Karen? Was that you?" the voice instantly sparked a sense of familiarity in Karen. But it was a familiarity she thought she would never experience again.  
"It couldn't be..." she told herself. Karen quickly dug her way out of the mess and rushed to the lobby. When she arrived, she saw Nikora helping a young gentleman. The man had sandy-blond hair and deep, blue eyes. His attire was finely dressed, with an orange collared shirt and tan slacks. Behind him looked to be a ton of scientific equipment of various uses.  
"Ah, Karen. There you are." Nikora greeted, "We have a new guest staying with us. Allow me to introduce-"  
"Subaru!" Karen gasped, recognizing her old colleague she worked with back in the South Pole.  
"What a surprise to see you here, Karen." Subaru greeted. Karen couldn't believe her luck. How did Subaru end up here of all places?

After changing out of her bathing suit, Karen helped Subaru bring his luggage up to his room.  
After much time had passed, Subaru set the last piece of equipment on his new desk and announced, "There. All finished." Sighing with relief, Karen looked at the tools Subaru brought with him. Much of it had screens or radio dishes attached to various pieces of equipment strewn throughout the room.  
Curious, Karen asked, "What are you going to do with all of this?"  
"I was sent here on a special assignment." he replied, "There is supposed to be a group of some strange sea creatures living in the area around here."  
"Strange sea creatures? But, Subaru, aren't you monitoring the South Pole?"  
"That is what I'm supposed to do. But I got drafted from the research division to investigate strange occurrences here." Immediately, Karen became concerned. There had been a lot of strange occurrences going on with Dr. Hishki and the water demons trying to capture her and the others. But, would it really attract Subaru's attention? And more importantly, why would it attract his attention?  
Booting up his equipment, Subaru assured, "But, I won't know what I'm researching until I find it."  
"Yeah. Hard to know what it is you're looking for until you find it." Karen shrugged sheepishly.  
Before she left the room, though, Subaru spoke out, "Oh Karen, one more thing. If you ever need any help, I will gladly give it."  
"Uh, thank you, Subaru." she blushed. And Karen left the room. But she still wondered what Subaru was up to.

Once Karen left, Subaru pulled out a tape recorder and recorded,  
 _Day 1, Subaru Crawford Hashimoto. Have just arrived at suspected target location known as Pearl Piari. No immediate threat of detection. I wager our target is still at large, and has accomplices with them. With any luck, they will come out of hiding with my presence here.  
Side note: I have met my old colleague Karen here as well. My hope is that I might be able to discover where my target is before she falls into this danger. I will protect her. End log._

Just as Karen came down from helping Subaru, she encountered Luchia and the other three mermaid princesses coming back from school.  
"Geez Luchia, the teacher only asked you to recite the formulas." Hanon chastised.  
"You weren't any help." Luchia retorted, "You couldn't even tell the class what they were either."  
"Oi, enough." Rina sighed as she tried to separate the two, "You've been like this all the way back here."  
That was when Seira noticed Karen coming down, who then greeted, "Hello Karen. Why are you back already?"  
With the others turning their attention to her, Karen replied, "Well, I came back to pick something up. But then I got caught up in Nikora-san's chore list."  
"At least you're making the effort." Hippo came in from out of nowhere, "These four are constantly getting distracted."  
Offended, Rina challenged, "What did you say Hippo?" With that, all four girls gave Hippo the stink-eye.  
Intimidated, Hippo hastily reconciled, "I mean, you four have been very busy. Nikora-san has kept you very busy."  
As Karen was about to make the last few steps down, she made a misstep and began to fall. However, somebody managed to grab her from behind and kept her from falling. When Karen looked behind her, she found Subaru holding her.  
"Are you alright Karen?" he asked in a concerning tone.  
Feeling rather hot in the face, Karen replied, "Y-yes. Thank you Subaru."  
"I was just about to head out anyway. It's a good thing I came when I did."  
"Y-yes." Just then, Subaru noticed Luchia, Hanon, Rina, and Seira down in the breezeway. Hanon and Luchia had their mouths open in surprise, while Rina had a puzzled look expressed on her face.  
"Karen, who is he?" Seira asked.  
"This is Subaru," Karen introduced, "And he is staying here."  
Luchia and Hanon just gasped, while Rina asked the burning question, "What are you doing here Hashimoto-san?"  
"I'm here to research a point of interest that my group wishes to understand." Subaru answered, "But for now, I was thinking of treating Karen to some lunch. If she would let me?"  
"Subaru." Karen gasped, then she told him, "Of course."  
"Great. Then let's- Waah!" That was when Subaru made a misstep himself and tumbled down the stairs. This made Karen feel somewhat embarrassed, for she remembered how much of a klutz Subaru could be. Helping him up, Karen walked with him to take him up on his offer.

For the initial moments of taking her to lunch, Subaru was attempting to find someplace to eat at. The city was full of great sites, but he wanted to find someplace Karen would really like. Just when Subaru thought he found the perfect place, he noticed Karen looking in an entirely opposite direction. She was staring at a monjayaki restaurant.  
"Do you want to eat there, Karen?" Subaru inquired.  
"Well, I..." Karen stuttered, "Yes, I would but..."  
With a chuckle, Subaru led her there and told her, "Don't worry about it. Let us go try it. I want to try some monjayaki myself."  
But inside, eating monjayaki did not come as easy as Subaru hoped. With the first dish, he either ate the fried food too soon, or he burnt it by keeping it on for too long. He even burnt his tongue on one of the burnt monjayaki.  
When the second dish came around, Karen instructed, "Subaru, watch me." So she took her small spatula, and pressed down on the bread, then she cut a section and ate it. After observing Karen's method, Subaru mimicked what she did, and found the food to be much more delicious.  
"This is great! What a wonderful choice Karen." he beamed.  
"Well, it's my favorite restaurant here." Karen blushed.  
When both of them had had their fill of monjayaki, they had eaten five dishes.  
"Five dishes comes out to 3500 yen." the waitress informed them.  
"Right." Karen acknowledged, and she looked in her purse for the money. However, she found she had far fewer yen than she thought. Even if she split the cost with Subaru, she wouldn't have enough to make it even. This worried her.  
"Thank you sir." she heard the waittress say. When she looked back, Subaru had finished paying the bill.  
Before Karen could ask what had just occurred, Subaru reasoned to her, "I said I would treat you to lunch. So don't worry about it."  
"Thank you, Subaru." Karen sighed in relief.

After they ate, Subaru took Karen over to the beachside area. When they arrived, he took out a small pair of binoculars from his coat pocket, and looked out to sea.  
He scanned the whole horizon before putting them away and muttering, "Nothing yet."  
"Looking for what your research group is after?" Karen asked.  
"Yeah. But nothing yet." he replied, "Today is technically supposed to be a break day. To get acquainted with where I would stay. Still, they might come while I'm not looking."  
"What is it you're looking for, Subaru?"  
"You might think I'm crazy if I told you. And, I'm under strict code of secrecy. I can't reveal what I'm after." Karen assumed as much. She figured he knew what he was looking for, he just didn't want to tell her. But, she wasn't overly concerned, nor very curious, to find out what Subaru was after. As long as it didn't concern her, she was okay with not knowing.  
"Mermaids." Subaru mumbled suddenly.  
Surprised by his sudden speaking, Karen inquired, "What- did you say?"  
"Did that come out loud?" Subaru sheepishly quizzed, "I'm sorry. I never meant to say anything."  
"What did you say?" Karen repeated her question.  
So Subaru answered, "I'm here to understand about mermaids. Particularly, the ones that have been reported to have appeared here. My group wants to confirm the reports that mermaids have been seen here. So I was sent with this objective." The news suddenly unnerved Karen. She blamed Hanon and Rina's recklessness. Their boyfriends had to have reported them to someone. What kind of human wouldn't?  
"Don't take it too seriously." Subaru assured, "We're skeptical about this as well. Our reports all seem to have come from a single, anonymous source. We don't know if we can trust them."  
"Do you really believe there are such things as mermaids?" Karen said haughtily, "Seriously Subaru, this is childish!"  
"I knew you would react this way. That's why I was supposed to keep it a secret. If anyone found out, my research group would not be happy." Karen had heard enough. Frustrated, she began storming off for Pearl Piari. Subaru tried calling to her, trying to apologize. But Karen ignored his pleas.  
"Karen." he muttered as he watched her walk away. Feeling dejected, he turned back to the sea's crystal blue form.  
As he watched the waves pound into the shore, he wondered, _Karen, why do you distrust me? I don't understand.  
_ But while he was pondering, a woman's voice rang out coldly, "My, this is intriguing. A human seeking out mermaids? Where have we seen this before?" When Subaru turned, he spotted Lady Bat, Linhua, and Arara, though he didn't know who they were.  
Spooked, Subaru demanded, "Who are you? What do you want?"  
"What we want is what you seek: the mermaids." Linhua answered, "Or, to be more precise, the Mermaid Princesses."  
"Mermaid Princesses?" he questioned.  
"That's right." Arara beamed, "Now, show us where they are!"  
"I don't know what you're talking about."  
"Do you?!" Pulling out a remote, Arara summoned yet another mechanical monster. A mammoth-looking robot erupted from the water, and snatched Subaru in its trunk.  
"Now tell us what you know about the Mermaid Princesses." Lady Bat taunted, "Or else..." And with a snap of her fingers, Subaru wailed out in pain as the mammoth mech squeezed him.

As Karen was walking back to Pearl Piari, she still struggled with what Subaru said. That he was searching for mermaids. She felt furious; at her friends and at Subaru. It was bad enough that Dr. Hishki was after them, but Subaru too? Karen felt like wanting to run away, go back to her kingdom, and find some other place to hide. But then, she felt a tear streak down her face. This perplexed her.  
 _Why am I crying?_ she thought. While she was still trying to understand her rush of feelings, Noelle and Coco raced up to her looking worried.  
"Karen, are you alright?" Noelle asked urgently.  
"Onee-chan? Coco? What's the matter?" Karen inquired.  
"We just heard something big appear near here." Coco began to explain, "When you hadn't returned from getting our food, Noelle and I went back to find you. Rina told us you had gone somewhere with someone called Subaru. so we went looking for you, and heard something mechanical stomping around." Karen didn't need to hear anymore than that. With instant urgency, Karen called for the other two to follow her, rushing back to where she left they approached the scene, the three girls spotted the mammoth mech, along with the three water demons and their prisoner.  
"We can't go up to them like we are now." Noelle pointed out to them.  
"Then we'll simply transform before we approach." Coco suggested.  
"We have to rescue Subaru. Let's go Noelle, Coco." Karen spoke with conviction. And all three began to transform.

 ** _"Purple Pearl Voice!"  
"Indigo Pearl Voice!"  
"Yellow Pearl Voice!"_**

And after they changed into their second forms, they stepped forward to challenge the water demons.  
"Release that man, right now!" Karen demanded. Startled, the three foes turned to who called them out.  
"The Purple, Indigo, and Yellow Pearl Mermaid Princesses?" Lady Bat gasped, "This is our lucky day."  
"It won't be for long." Noelle retorted.  
"Time to send you wash-outs back to your master." Coco teased.  
"Wash-outs?!" the three demons exclaimed in outrage.  
But they never got the chance to retaliate, as the Mermaid Princesses called out, "Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!"

With this song, Karen took the lead by singing her personal song. A song of longing and affection, of wondering if who she loved, loved her back. That despite their star-crossed fates, she would hold onto these feelings she had. With Coco and Noelle's accompanying, the three water demons were unable to bear their power. Even the mech began to crumble and crack from their song. The mech loosened its grip on Subaru enough to where it dropped him, while he was still unconscious from being squeezed for so long.

After concluding the melody, the Mermaid Princesses called out, "Love Shower Pitch! Would you like an encore?"  
"No matter what we do, you mermaid princesses beat us every time!" Lady Bat whined.  
"We'll retreat for now. But we'll be back." Linhua informed. then all three water demons vanished. However, despite being heavily damaged, the mech grabbed Subaru by the ankles and attempted to drag him back to sea with it.  
"Subaru!" Karen exclaimed. she immediately gave chase to the robot as it sunk beneath the waves.  
As the mech continued to descend, Karen swam up to Subaru and worked to pry the trunk coil off of him. Despite being cracked and seriously damaged, its grip was still too strong for Karen to undo. Then, Noelle and Coco came up to her and added their strength to pry Subaru away. With some effort, they finally managed to free him, and Karen carried him back to shore.

Once they made it back to the surface, Karen set Subaru down on the sand. As she did, Subaru began calling out her name quite suddenly.  
"Karen, no." he muttered. Seeing him the way he was, unconscious yet persistent, tore at Karen's heart. She was devoted to fulfill her duties as a Mermaid Princess, to protect the peace of the seas. But seeing Subaru made her feel conflicted. She no longer knew what to think of him. Should she feel mad at him? Pity him? Or something else? Karen couldn't decide.  
"Karen, we should leave before he wakes up." Noelle suggested. Figuring it would be best to leave before he saw her, Karen returned to the sea with her friends. But as she did, Subaru got up and managed to catch a glimpse of a mermaid with long, purple hair and a purple tail, diving under the waves.  
"Could that have been..?" he wondered. But as a scientist, he was dubious.

That night, the mermaid princesses were hanging out in the dining area on the first floor. Luchia and Hanon were looking through some magazines of popular dating spots; Seira was talking with Meru about her time with Hugo (much to Meru's dislike of the guy), Noelle and Coco were eating the food they couldn't eat earlier that day, and Rina was studying her notes. Karen simply sat staring at her food, lost in thought about her feelings for Subaru. Was it right for her to feel this way?  
Sensing her dilemma, Rina went over to her table and inquired, "How was your time with Hamasaki-san?"  
Blushing, Karen stuttered, "Well... He-I... I mean..."  
"Relax Karen. I know how you are feeling." Karen became puzzled. How did Rina know how she was feeling? She had it perfectly well with Masahiro. She never struggled with the indecision she was facing.  
"I always thought that love was pointless if there was so much that came with it." Rina elaborated, "So I thought it was best never to fall in love. Until I realized its purpose: being in love means learning to cope with the bad as well as the good." Suddenly, Karen began to see that Rina _did_ know how she felt. She had been in the same scenario as her before.  
"Take a look at Luchia and Hanon's love lives." Rina continued, "They had a hard time getting along with their boyfriends. And they were always excited about being in love. What I'm trying to say, Karen, is don't be afraid."  
"Rina." Karen mumbled in response.  
Standing up, Rina finished, "Love is another power source for us as Mermaid Princesses. It helps to make many miracles." Then she went up to her room. Karen took in all she was told and thought it over for a little bit. A human and mermaid couple may have been forbidden among mermaids. But if her friends were committed to it, maybe she could try to follow in their stead.

Subaru was working on his 'secret' project at the time. Before doing anything else, he pulled out his tape recorder and whispered,  
 _Update. our target is in the area, as we suspected. The worst news is, he has created mechs and enlisted aid to seek out his targets. I will continue to observe until enough data has been collected.  
Side note: I believe I may have been rescued by one of the subject's targets. While unconscious, I heard a strange and wonderful melody being sung by someone. Plus I managed to catch a glimpse of a mermaid. This mermaid had a purple tail, and long, purple hair. Almost like Karen. I wonder if she knows anything about this mermaid.  
_Unexpectedly, a knock sounded on Subaru's door, startling him slightly. Ending his recording, Subaru opened the door to find Karen standing behind it.  
"Karen?! Is something the matter?"  
"Subaru, I'm sorry." she told him, "I misjudged your intentions, and assumed something completely wrong. Please forgive me."  
Taking Karen's hand, Subaru responded, "Forgiven, and forgotten. There is nothing to worry about anymore." Now Karen felt very hot in the head, but also elated. Maybe her feelings for Subaru were stronger than she realized.  
Feeling bashful, she said, "Thank you Subaru."  
And in her mind, she thought, _Thank you Rina. You may be right. So maybe, I will give this a chance._

 **Yep! Subaru is back! This should be fun for Karen. Right?**

 **Stay tuned for more. Till then,**

 **Encore wa ika ga?**


	11. Mermaid Runaway

**So, we've had robots blasting, demons conniving, and mermaids banishing. Anybody wish there was more to life than battles and avoiding creepy scientists? Well, wish granted.**

 **Now granted, this isn't that great timing for this chapter. But, it is a good time to get away from all the seriousness of the current crisis, and just have a little good old fun. Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Mermaid Melody. All rights to appropriate owners.**

Chapter 11: Mermaid Runaway

A bright and sunny afternoon was beating down on Kaito as he was training for an upcoming surf competition. Luchia sat on a picnic blanket on the shore, watching him shred on the waves. After some time of surfing, Kaito came back on land, only to be met by a massive surge of school girls. Worried, Luchia abandoned the bento she had made to get to Kaito. As she approached, Luchia tried to fight through the crowd of adoring fans to get to her boyfriend. But the girls managed to squeeze her out of the mass. Irritated and frustrated, Luchia pouted back to where she had been earlier.

After Kaito was finished with the craziness earlier, he and Luchia walked back to Pearl Piari. But Luchia was still in a pouty mood. She knew Kaito was popular among the girls at school, the problem came when Kaito paid more attention to them than he did to her.  
"Luchia, what's the matter?" Kaito asked, seeing the face Luchia was making.  
"Nothing at all. Everything is okay." Luchia lied haughtily. But Kaito already knew the problem with her. They had been through this kind of tiff before.  
"Come on Luchia. You know me better than that." he said in a joking manner.  
"No, I do not!" Luchia huffed. Kaito saw he was getting nowhere this way. Then he remembered something, and figured now was the best chance to bring it up.  
"I guess that's too bad. And I was considering helping with your birthday party tomorrow." That snapped Luchia back into the conversation.  
"You really were going to help plan for my birthday?" she inquired.  
Chuckling in his mind, Kaito thought, _That worked really well. Thank you, July Second._  
"Yeah. But since you seem to think it's all settled, I suppose I can just practice with Daichi and Kengu." Kaito told her slyly.  
"Wait, Kaito! I... would really like it if you came to my birthday party."  
"Great! Well, I'll catch you later. I promised Maki-san I would work extra hours before he closed up shop." And Kaito headed off for the beach house. And Luchia returned to Pearl Piari, eager for tomorrow to begin.

But in actuality, Kaito was really going to Maki's beach house to help prepare for Luchia's party. As he was busy tying party streamers on the walls, memories of last year's attempt flashed through his mind. When he tried to hold a birthday party for Luchia then, the house where the party was supposed to take place got burnt down for some mysterious reason. And Kaito's present, a pink surfboard with a picture of a hibiscus, got burned too. Not only that, but as Kaito now knew, Luchia had to go back to the ocean palace for a coming-of-age ceremony.  
But this year, Kaito was determined to make this year the best for Luchia.  
As he finished up the sign he was hanging, Maki came up behind him and complemented, "It looks really great Kaito. I have no doubt that Luchia will be thrilled when she sees it."  
"Thank you, Maki-san." Kaito responded, "And what about the plan with Nikora-san and the others?"  
"Everything has been arranged."  
"Great! Now we'll just need to get her here at the right time tomorrow." And Kaito could not wait for tomorrow.

The next morning turned out to be serene and beautiful.  
As soon as Luchia awoke, she shot up and beamed, "It's today!" Rushing out of bed, she went to work getting ready for the day. While she did, she began singing "Feeling of Love." Luchia was filled with so much energy, she felt like she would burst with excitement.  
As she was fitting her ribbons in her hair, Hanon and Rina came into her room and greeted, "Happy Birthday, Luchia!"  
"Thank you, Hanon, Rina." Luchia returned.  
"Can you believe it? You are now 15. Where does the time go?" Rina sighed with a smile.  
"If this keeps up, Luchia will become an old lady before long." Hanon teased. Luchia growled at her for it, but she immediately after put back on her smiling face.  
then, Seira came in and cheered, "Happy Birthday, Luchia-sama!"  
"Thank you, Seira."  
"Seira, with that much energy, it's almost like you think it's your birthday." Rina joshed.  
"I'm just excited for Luchia. especially with the big pa-" Frantically, Hanon and Rina covered Seira's to keep her from saying too much. With sheepish chuckling, the two escorted Seira outside. What Seira was about to say puzzled Luchia, but she shrugged it off. She was too ecstatic to think about much else.

As Luchia was heading downstairs, she overheard Nikora and Taki conversing in hushed voices. And those hushed voices changed the mood of the whole morning.

 _"The whole arrangement has been set. Luchia will be in for a big surprise." Nikora whispered.  
"True. But what about the other plan? If we go through with it, wouldn't Maki-san become suspicious?" Taki asked.  
"It will be fine. The engagement will be a big hit. And Luchia will have the most wonderful birthday ever."  
"He has been rather busy with the preparations. But I suppose he is truly devoted to please Luchia."  
"Indeed. Now, we'd better get the girls ready for tonight."  
"Let's leave them be for now. No doubt they want to spend as much time as possible with her before tonight._"

Luchia didn't want to hear anymore after that. All of a sudden, her chest felt hollow. What could Nikora be planning that she thought Luchia would like? Was it possible she was trying to bring someone else in to replace Kaito in her heart? Luchia didn't want to find out. If it was going to happen at her birthday party, then she would simply not go.

Having hastily packed her backpack with certain essentials, Luchia attempted to sneak out of Pearl Piari.  
She was only a few steps out the door, when Hippo came out behind her and spoke, "Luchia-san, where are you going?"  
Afraid that she was about to be caught, Luchia turned around and replied, "I'm just... going out... somewhere."  
"Very well. But be wary." Hippo advised. then he went back inside. With a sigh, Luchia proceeded along the coast, hoping to avoid Nikora's 'engagement.'

Just after she left, Kaito came by Pearl Piari to pick her up. Before he would take Luchia to the party, Kaito wanted to spend the day with her by going on a date. Part of why he was doing this was to make up for yesterday, when all those school girls flocked to him. As much as he admired the attention, the one he truly had feelings for was Luchia. And he wasn't going to let anything deter him.  
As Kaito proceeded up the walkway to the hotel, he suddenly got sprayed by a strong jet of water.  
"Hey, knock it off!" he yelled. Immediately, the water flow stopped.  
"Sorry Kaito." Coco apologized, "Something seems to be wrong with the faucet."  
Shaking off most of the water, Kaito asked, "What do you mean?" Coco showed Kaito the hose faucet and explained the problem to him.  
"I was trying to get the water on like Nikora-san told me to. But it wasn't coming out strong enough." she explained, "So I went to get more water, but then it was too much. I'm not sure what to do." Kaito didn't see anything wrong with the faucet. The water should have been coming out at the right amount. But as he evaluated the line itself, he found the problem.  
"Maybe you might want to try fixing those kinks in the hose. They're keeping water from flowing right." Embarrassed to find that she had missed the real problem, Coco worked with Kaito to undo the kinks in the line. Once she did, the water came out properly.  
"Thank you Kaito." Coco said with a wink.  
"No problem." Kaito replied, "By the way, is Luchia still inside?"  
"I think so. She was talking with Hanon and Rina earlier."  
"Thanks."  
But just before he could go inside to look, Hanon burst through the sliding door and inquired, "Coco, do you know where Luchia is?"  
"I thought she was in her room." Coco told her.  
"Oh no!" Hanon gasped.  
"Hanon, what's wrong?" Kaito asked.  
"Kaito? Perfect! Luchia has gone missing."  
"Missing?!" Kaito and Coco gasped.  
"Yeah. I went to her room to check on her, and I found this note on her bed." Kaito took the note from Hanon and began to read it aloud.

-

 _I'm going away forever. I don't want to celebrate my birthday anymore. Good-bye.  
-Luchia_

-  
 _  
_What was Luchia thinking? Why would she just run off all of a sudden, especially on er birthday? None of this made any sense to Kaito.  
"Let's split up and search for her." Kaito suggested, "I'll call for some help to look around town."  
"We'll check the sea to see if she's there." Coco offered.  
"Alright. But be careful." Settled on the course of action, the three friends took off to gather their other friends in an effort to find Luchia.

Meanwhile, near the lighthouse, Luchia had stopped to rest to rest and get her bearings. She hadn't run away since the one time she dreamt that Kaito supposedly found out her secret. But then, she was trying to keep her dream from coming true. Now, she just didn't want to lose Kaito to someone else.  
Pulling out her map, she pondered, "Now which way to the train station?" Luchia was trying to take an alternative route to the station since she knew her friends would be looking for her. She hoped that by running away, she would avoid the person Nikora and Taki talked about. But finding a new route was proving to be difficult. Luchia didn't want to take any paths she knew her friends would expect her to use. Amidst her searching, however, her stomach began to grumble.  
"Aw! I should have at least stayed to eat breakfast before I ran off." she complained. But as she was looking for a snack to settle her hunger, a gust of wind came by and blew away Luchia's map.  
"Wait! Come back!" she called out to it. But the map was miles away, drifting along in the wind.  
"Can today get any worse?" she moaned.

"Luchia! Where are you? Luchia!" Kaito called out. He had managed to call in his surfing friends to help in looking for Luchia as well as Rihito and Mikaru. With any luck, they would find Luchia before sunset. But Kaito still wrestled with the question of why Luchia took off the way she did. What could she have been thinking, disappearing the way she did? That question continued to press on Kaito's mind. But in turn, it made him even more determined to find her.  
Then, out of nowhere, something slapped into Kaito's face.  
Wrestling it off, he grunted, "What the-" but then he saw that it was a map. A map of town! Kaito figured then that Luchia had to have been using this map to get somewhere. she must have been close by. so he headed off in the direction that the map came from, hoping Luchia might be that way too.

Curled up against the lighthouse wall, Luchia finished the last of her snack in a single bite. But the comfort of the food disappeared rather quickly as she contemplated where to go now. Without the map, she had no idea which way to go while avoiding her friends, Hippo, or Nikora. Then, as she looked out to sea, she came upon the idea to flee into the ocean. But she figured that would be risky with Dr. Hishki, and she wasn't willing to run into that possibility. However, she did remember the treasure she and the others discovered that one day. That one little fact settled it.  
But before she could leap into the ocean, a pink, baby dolphin appeared and began chirping cheerfully.  
"Momo-chan?" Luchia asked, puzzled by the dolphin's sudden appearance.  
Just then, she heard Kaito call out, "Luchia!" She turned just in time to see Kaito coming up to her. And he did not look very pleased.  
"Ai, Luchia! where did you think you were running off to?!" Kaito scorned.  
"Kaito, I- I-" Luchia tried to speak.  
"Everyone is worried sick! We've been looking for you everywhere." Luchia felt disappointed in herself. As much as she wanted to keep Kaito close to her, she had ended up creating just a big mess for everyone, including him.  
Seeing how sad Luchia was becoming, Kaito comforted, "If you were going to take off, why didn't you take me with you?" Immediately, Luchia began to perk back up."C'mon." Kaito chuckled, "Let's go run off somewhere. Together." Agreeing, Luchia bounded back to the road.  
Before he followed, Kaito told Momo, "Let the others know I found her. And I'll bring her to the beach house towards the evening." Momo gave a couple of quick chirps in affirmation at his instructions, then dove back under.  
"Kaito, hurry up!" Luchia called to him.  
"Coming." he replied back. Then the two took off for their time together.

To Luchia, everything seemed to be finally coming together. She and Kaito spent time in the city looking at new clothes, enjoying attractions like the karaoke building, and even simply walking around. It became the best birthday Luchia ever had. Kaito was pleased that Luchia was having such an enjoyable time. In fact, he couldn't remember a time when he had so much fun with her. It was definitely an experience the two would cherish for a long time.

As the sun began to set, Kaito began leading Luchia to Maki's beach house for the huge party. Along the way, Luchia began to become sullen and started falling behind.  
Confused, Kaito inquired, "What's the matter, Luchia?" Luchia felt like she couldn't hold it back any longer. She needed to let Kaito know why she ran off in the first place.  
"Kaito, what would you do if there was someone else who loved me? What would you do if they wanted to take your place?" The question both puzzled and bothered Kaito.  
"What do you mean?" he asked further.  
"What if, someone else wanted to be the one for me. What would you do?" He had never thought about something like that. Ever since Kaito found out that Luchia was the mermaid he had been searching for, he wanted to keep her close to him. So, he pondered the question for a bit.  
Finally, he replied, "I think... I would let you decide."  
"Kaito..!" Luchia began to protest.  
But Kaito interrupted by explaining, "Luchia, you know where I stand on my feelings towards you. But, I don't want to stand in the way of what you feel. If you still feel very strongly for me, I will continue to return those feelings. But if this other person is someone you like more than me, I will respect your decision and let you go how you want to go."  
"But Kaito, what if they try to take me away from you?"  
Taking her hand, Kaito assured, "Then I will fight to keep you close." Luchia didn't know what to say. Her heart simply began to race uncontrollably in her chest. After Kaito told her that the choice of whom she would love would fall to her, she knew immediately that that was Kaito.  
"C'mon, let's hurry to Maki-san's beach house." Kaito urged.  
"Right." Luchia agreed.

Before long, they found the restaurant sitting above the beach. Taking a deep breath, Luchia followed Kaito inside.  
Instantly, everybody inside popped out and roared out, "Happy Birthday Luchia!" Party poppers puffed out streamers and confetti, surprising Luchia quite a bit. When she realized what was going on, her smile grew even bigger. All of her friends were present here, and the cafe was decorated in celebration of her birthday.  
"Thank you everyone." Luchia graciously replied,  
"Don't thank us Luchia." Maki told her, "Kaito helped organize everything." Kaito sheepishly chuckled at Maki's saying he set the whole thing up. But now Luchia understood that Nikora was referring to Kaito when she mentioned someone setting up the party. Still, that just made her even happier.  
"Hurry up and blow out the candles." Karen urged her star struck friend. the cake was covered in pink frosting, two-layers tall, and had figurines of her friends as their mermaid selves with Luchia at the top. Ecstatic, Luchia blew out the three candles of blue, pink, and green. And the party truly began.

After chomping down on cake and playing a few party games, Nikora and Maki cleared away a section of the room as the Mermaid Princesses in their Pichi Pichi forms, took to the makeshift stage.  
"And now, for our special guest," they announced, "We'll be singing Pichi Pichi Voice, Birthday Chorus!" While the girls sang their first song, "Splash Dream," Kaito sat next to Luchia as they enjoyed the concert together.  
"What do you think, Luchia?" he asked.  
"Thank you Kaito." she told him, "This is so amazing!"  
"And it isn't over yet."  
As the singers finished, Hanon called out, "Now, Luchia, come on stage."  
"Huh? Me?"  
"That's right!" Rina chimed in, ""Now you shall lead us in a special birthday song." As she came onstage, Seira handed Luchia a microphone. And she knew just the song to sing.  
So she sung her personal song, "Feeling of Love," with everyone else accompanying. The energy from the song consumed the entire room, making everyone feel super excited. Luchia was so excited that she brought up Kaito to join her in singing part of the second verse. but Kaito wasn't the only one who followed. All the party guests came up and joined Luchia and the others in singing the song.  
Once they were all done, Luchia called out, "Love Shower Pitch!"

As the night wore on, everyone began cleaning up and heading home. Luchia could not belive how energized she felt right now. The party may have been over, but she still felt like it had only just begun. Once he had finished cleaning up, Kaito came out and escorted Luchia home.  
"This was the best birthday ever!" Luchia cheered after they had gone a ways, "Thank you so much Kaito."  
"Your welcome." he replied, "But I still have one more surprise for you."  
"What do you mean?"  
Instead of answering, Kaito took off towards the beach and said, "If you want to find out, try to catch me."  
"Aw, Kaito!" Luchia moaned. But she gave chase anyway. Kaito led her some distance along the beach, then veered into the water and dove in. Luchia followed suite, and transformed into her mermaid self. Immediately following, Luchia caught up ton Kaito.  
"Gotcha!" she proclaimed.  
"So you did." Kaito admitted, "Now for your last surprise." Kaito held Luchia close to him, gazing into her eyes. Luchia instantly figured out what he was about to do. they inched closer together, until they were sharing an underwater kiss. The best birthday surprise Luchia believed she ever had.

 **Well, that went rather crazy for a bit there. But, all's well that ends well, right? Luchia got her birthday (and is not being shipped off with someone else), the group got to enjoy some time off from fighting robots and all, and a wish has been fulfilled. Stay tuned for more. Till then...**

 **Encore wa ika ga?**


	12. Triple Threat

**Yo yo yo readers! Got your mics and songs ready? Cause we're back. And things just got a bit serious with this chapter. Read on to find out.**

 **Disclaimer (as always): I don't own Mermaid Melody or anything related to it. All rights to their appropriate owners.**

* * *

Chapter 12: Triple Threat

In an underwater base, Lady Bat, Arara, and Linhua were facing ridicule from Dr. Hishki.  
"I had brought you three back to help me capture the Mermaid Princesses. But no matter what, you three always seem to fail me. Your powers should be enough to rival the them!"  
"We're very sorry, Hishki-sama." Lady Bat tried to reconcile.  
"Sorry doesn't cut it anymore! However, all your bumbling has helped me gather enough data to capture the Mermaid Princesses." Pulling a lever on his control panel, a door opened behind Dr. Hishki as three figures came out.  
"Time to use their biggest weakness against them. And capture them, once and for all."

* * *

At a department store on land, Hanon and Luchia were busy trying out cute outfits and dresses.  
Trying out a pink blouse and blue mini-skirt combo, Hanon bragged, "Only I, Hoshou Hanon, could make this outfit work so well on me."  
Wearing short jeans, a yellow tank-top, and straw hat, Luchia boasted, "I think this outfit would work best for me. Don't you think Hanon?"  
"Luchia, we're going to have to refine your tastes if that is considered your best." Coming out from another changing room, Kaito wore an orange shirt with royal-blue board shorts.  
"Why did I let you drag me into this?" he griped.  
"That outfit looks so cool on you Kaito!" Luchia complemented.  
"It really shows off your muscular side." Hanon inputted, "When girls see that, they won't get enough."  
Flustered, Kaito closed the curtains and said, "I'm not getting this!"  
"Aw Kaito!" Luchia moaned.  
"Hey Hanon," Nagisa came from another changing room, "How do I look?" When Hanon looked over to him, she felt almost entranced. Nagisa was wearing a nice, aqua-blue tuxedo with matching bowtie and slacks. Hanon could not believe how handsome he looked.  
But then, she shook her head and grumbled, "Not good enough!" But Nagisa just chuckled, knowing full well what Hanon really thought about him. But then, she noticed something about their group.  
"Wait a second! Where's Rina?" she pointed out.  
"I think I saw her take off with Masahiro on his motorcycle." Nagisa told her.  
"What?! How did she sneak by us without letting us know? And I had a nice outfit picked out for her."

* * *

Meanwhile, Masahiro and Rina were enjoying a relaxing picnic on a grassy hill by the railroad bridge.  
Taking a bite out of a rice ball, Rina told her companion, "Thank you Masahiro."  
"Don't mention it." Masahiro replied, "I'm just glad you could enjoy some time with me. But, are you sure your friends won't mind if you aren't with them?"  
"They'll be alright. Kaito and Nagisa are with those two."  
"Yeah. That's true." While Rina ate a little more of her rice ball, she noticed Masahiro staring off into space. He wasn't very prone to acting like this with her, which told Rina something she expected to happen.  
 _He must be thinking about the mermaid me._ she pondered. She remembered when she and Masahiro kissed in the mermaid treasure chamber. _He must be wondering whether or not his feelings are in the right place.  
_ "Rina-chan," Masahiro spoke suddenly, "What would you do if there was someone that you felt so strongly for, but they rarely ever showed themselves?"  
Rina pondered the question briefly, then answered, "I would keep the memory of them close, so I would never forget them."  
"Right. Well, what if that someone resembled someone you know? Somebody you could never replace?"  
"Masahiro, what are you saying?" Rina didn't know if Masahiro was beginning to realize that she was the mermaid he was beginning to fall in love with.  
"Rina, would you be..." Masahiro began.  
"Would I be..?" Rina repeated. Their gaze suddenly locked, and they inched closer to each other to kiss.  
But before they could, Hanon's voice rang out, "So this is where you went off to." Facing the interruption, both Rina and Masahiro felt embarrassed to have been caught by Hanon, Luchia, and their boyfriends.  
"Hanon, you didn't need to barge in on them." Kaito reasoned.  
Setting down next to Rina, Luchia inquired, "So, what did we miss?"  
M-Miss?!" Rina protested, "There was nothing going on!"  
"Then why are you getting all red in the face?" Hanon teased. And that just made Rina feel even more hot in the head.  
But before the three could escalate the situation anymore, Kaito came over and told everyone, "There's a surfing tournament going on tomorrow that I'm competing in. I wanted to see if you all would consider coming to see it."  
"You know I'm going, Kaito." Luchia immediately answered.  
"Sure. I'll come." Masahiro replied.  
"I'll come, if Hanon comes too." Nagisa told them.  
"I'll come. And I'm sure Hanon would love to come too." Rina slyly responded.  
Pressured by the dual response, Hanon confessed, "All right! I'll go too!" And everyone cheered.

* * *

After their plans had been arranged, the three Mermaid Princesses returned to Pearl Piari, talking up a storm about their day.  
"You should've seen Hanon." Luchia told Rina, "Her face got so red when she saw Nagisa."  
"It was not!" Hanon refuted.  
"Getting defensive, are we Hanon?" Rina teased.  
"What have you three been up to?" Karen came over.  
"We were out doing some shopping." Hanon replied, "At least, some of us were."  
"Hanon." Rina growled.  
"Never mind that." Karen interrupted, "Do you know where Seira disappeared to?"  
"Actually," Luchia spoke, "I think I remember her saying she was going to be meeting with someone." Just then, Seira came in with a cheerful expression on her face.  
"Hello everyone." she greeted.  
"Seira, where have you been?" Karen inquired with a stern expression.  
"She was out with Hugo-kun after school today." Meru answered, coming down the stairs with a rather annoyed expression, "I saw them walk off into town right when school got out."  
"I'm sorry Meru." Seira tried to reconcile, "I tried to offer to bring you along, but you wouldn't listen to me."  
"It's alright Seira." Hanon assured, "Meru just gets jealous at times like this."  
"Come on. Let's go talk about our days while we get you cleaned up." Luchia offered. Somberly, Seira went with Luchia back to her room.

Luchia sat next to Seira as she took her bath. Seira poured out lots of bubbles into the tub, but it didn't help her feel any less bummed out about Meru.  
"Why does Meru hate Hugo-san, Luchia?" she asked her mentor.  
"I don't think she hates Hugo-san, Seira." Luchia answered, "I think she's just jealous."  
"Jealous? What would make her jealous?"  
"Well, you know how much attention Hugo-san gives you. The truth of the matter is, Meru is jealous of you."  
"Jealous of me?!" Seira gasped.  
With a nod, Luchia explained, "Meru has always had a hard time understanding why we fall in love with human boys. She tries to understand it herself, but she misses something by doing so."  
"Meru said that you were jealous of her once, when she tried to love Kaito-kun." Luchia's only response was a nervous chuckle. Just then, Hippo entered the bathroom, dragging a small tub behind him. "But why is Meru jealous of me now?" Seira inquired, unaware of Hippo using some of the water in her bath to make a bath for himself.  
"I don't really know. With Meru, it could be any kind of reason." Luchia wondered.  
"Maybe she is simply making sure you don't fall in love like Luchia-san has." Hippo sighed as he relaxed in his bath.  
"Could be." Luchia muttered.  
"True true." Seira pondered. It was in that instant that the two took notice to Hippo's intrusion.  
"HIPPO! How many times do we have to tell you: don't intrude!" Luchia squealed.  
"What about my bath time?!" Hippo replied after being discovered, "A penguin has to have his time too!"  
"Not while I'm taking bath!" Seira shrieked, "Now GET OUT!" And Hippo was tossed out, with a black-eye as his present.  
"That penguin!" Seira huffed.  
"I agree." Luchia said haughtily.

* * *

Out on the road overlooking the sea, Nagisa was walking along while pondering some thoughts he had. For the longest time, he had tried to impress Hanon in order to get her to like him. It wasn't an easy road to take, but it paid off eventually.  
But now, Nagisa thought about that blue mermaid he had met the last few times. Time and again, his thoughts seemed to mesh the mermaid and Hanon together, like they could be the same person. Nagisa doubted it was true. There was no way these two faces were one and the same. But then, the memory of the kiss in the treasure cave came back. And Nagisa found it hard to argue that the feeling he felt then was similar to how he felt around Hanon. But why was that?  
"Can't sleep, huh Nagisa?" came Masahiro's voice. Nagisa turned around to find the guy jogging up to him, dressed in a jacket and sweat pants.  
"Yeah." Nagisa replied, "I'm still thinking about... the treasure hunt."  
"So am I. I can't help this feeling that there is something to those mermaids. And, to girls like Rina and Hanon."  
"Do you think Kaito is having trouble with something like that too?"  
"I'm not sure. That guy seems to know more about this mystery than we do."  
After striking on an idea, Nagisa suggested, "After the surfing tournament is done, let's get him to tell us all he knows." Masahiro was startled by such a suggestion, but he decided it was worth it was worth a shot.  
"Okay. We'll talk to him after the contest is over. See ya." And he jogged off. But now, Nagisa thought he might get to find out about those mermaids at long last.

* * *

The next morning, the beach was packed with spectators and surfers as the surfing contest was about to get underway. Luchia, Hanon, and Rina were looking for Kaito and the other boys. Luchia carried a bento with her, the best bento she could make for Kaito's big day at the tournament. Eventually, Luchia spotted Kaito talking with his friends.  
"Kaito!" she called to him.  
As she approached, Kaito spoke, "Ah, you made it. For a moment there, I thought you wouldn't make it."  
"Of course I would make it." she told him, "I was just up late making your bento."  
"More like all-night." Hanon moaned, rubbing her eyes.  
"She even called us in to help after making a huge mess." Rina elaborated. The thought made Kaito chuckle.  
"So, you're competing too?" came a new voice. When the group looked to the newcomer, they saw Hugo, dressed in a black-and-orange wetsuit, being accompanied by Seira.  
"Yep. You too?" Kaito returned.  
"You bet. It ought to be interesting to compete against the East champion."  
"I look forward to it." Just then, an announcement went out to alert all competitors to make their way to the starting point.  
With a wink, Hugo requested, "Wish me luck, Seira." Seira simply blushed in response as Hugo took off.  
"Good luck Kaito." Luchia told her boyfriend. Kaito gave a wink and a thumbs up, his assurance that he had this.

 _And the competitors are off to a fantastic start._ the announcer spoke to the crowd, _The waves are giving many of our surfers quite a challenge. Number 28, Doumoto Kaito, is showing off his stuff once more, proving he's worthy of being champion. But Number 17, Masani Hugo, is giving the judges some fine skills as well. This could all come down to those two competitors._ The crowd roared for the surfers, giving their support however they could. Luchia and Seira pitched in too, both cheering for their respective surfers. But Hanon and Rina merely observed the contest from behind the two fan girls.  
"That Hugo seems like he would be a contender for Kaito." Rina observed.  
"I never knew he surfed before. But he looks really good out there." Hanon inputted.  
 _What's this?_ the announcer gasped, _Numbers 28 and 17 have tied for first place?! Unbelievable! It's been decided that there will be a final heat between Kaito and Hugo after a quick break. All surfers, return to shore!  
_ "Kaito and Hugo..." Luchia started.  
"...Tied for first?" Seira finished. Then the two cheered even louder.  
"This is so amazing!" they both squealed. Then they took off to meet with their finalist.  
"Those two certainly take after each other." Rina chuckled.  
"Like two peas in a pod." Hanon sighed.  
"Hey! Sorry we're late." they heard Masahiro call as he and Nagisa came up to them.  
"So, what'd we miss?" Nagisa inquired.  
"Kaito and Hugo have tied for first." Rina told them, "So they're both going to do one last run to decide the victor."  
"Wow! That's impressive." Masahiro exclaimed.  
"Hey, where's Luchia?" Nagisa wondered.  
"She went to meet with Kaito." Hanon answered. But then, Rina and Hanon spotted three strange-looking people following Luchia and Seira. Just seeing them gave the two a bad vibe.

Luchia immediately found herself and Seira lost among the crowd. They had thought they had seen Hugo and Kaito come this way, but the crowd was so thick that they couldn't find them. And the worst part was, Luchia might miss Kaito before he went back to finish the competition.  
"Where could they have disappeared to, Luchia?" Seira asked.  
"I don't know." Luchia replied worriedly.  
"Well, look at you two cuties." came a guy's voice from behind them. Luchia and Seira turned sharply to find three strange guys behind them. They wore jackets that were red, blue, and green, with matching beanies. They wore sweat pants that hung lower than their hips. These three guys frightened the two girls.  
"Feeling a little lost, aren't we?" the guy in blue asked.  
"That's just a shame to end all shames." the green one sighed dramatically.  
"Who are you people?" Seira whimpered, hiding behind Luchia.  
"There's no need to be scared." the red one tried to assure, "Why don't you hang out with our crew?" Luckily, Luchia knew better than to stick around guys like these. She grabbed Seira's hand and pulled her away from the strangers. But then, the guy in red grabbed Luchia's wrist.  
"Hey, I asked you a question!" he snapped, "The least you could do is-" Suddenly, his face contorted with pain. Behind him, Kaito was twisting the guy's arm with a hard expression. When the other guys took notice to Kaito, they were immediately intimidated by his cold stare. Once they got the message, Kaito let them leave.  
"Th-Thank you, Kaito." Luchia stuttered.  
"Ai! I can't leave you for a minute without you causing a ruckus with strange guys." Kaito sighed.  
"What is that supposed to mean?!" Luchia exclaimed angrily, "Those boys were the ones trying to do something!"  
Upon seeing her pouting face, Kaiot laughed, "There's the Luchia I love."  
"Kaito, you meanie!" Luchia grumbled. At that moment, Hugo walked up to them.  
"So, we are tied for first place, huh Kaito?" he spoke.  
"Yeah. But don't expect that I'll let you win just because you're good at surfing." Kaito returned.  
"Same goes for you." And he walked off with Seira.  
It was then that the announcer came on, _Doumoto-san and Masani-sna, please make your way to the starting area for the final heat._ Before he took off, Kaito received a quick kiss on the cheek.  
"Good luck Kaito." she wished him. With a wink, Kaito took off to finish the competition.

 _Now, in our final heat, Kaito and Hugo are strutting their stuff out on the waves._ the announcer spoke, _A superb Aerial Reverse Flip by Number 28. But, not to be outdone, Number 17 pulls out some impressive Curlers. These two are really going at it, neck and neck for the gold._  
"Go for it Kaito!" Luchia cheered.  
"You can do it Hugo!" Seira pitched in. The energy between these two was palpable to their friends.  
"They're really going at it, aren't they?" Nagisa commented.  
"Who? Luchia and Seira, or the boys?" Hanon quizzed.  
"I don't think it really matters." Rina explained, "They all really want their friend to win."  
"No doubt." Masahiro complied. After a few minutes into the heat, while the surfers were on their final wave, Masahiro pointed out, "What's that out there?" Suddenly, another wave rose over the one Kaito and Hugo were riding on. Hugo quickly spotted it, and abandoned his ride. But Kaito noticed too late, and was sucked down as the wave crashed. Everyone gasped at what they had just seen. Luchia felt like something had stopped inside of her.  
Then, from below the waves, a humongous robot erupted from the water, and began to chase the crowd. The Mermaid Princesses recognized it as Dr. Hishki's robot, the same one that attacked Luchia's home.  
"Come on! We have to get out of here!" Nagisa urged.  
With ferocity growing inside her, Luchia instructed Seira, "Find the others, and bring Hippo." Seira didn't argue. She knew this was something Luchia was set on doing. Luchia rushed into the ocean, followed by Hanon and Rina.  
"Hey! Get back here!" Masahiro called to them. He and Nagisa tried to follow, but the robot blocked them. And they could only watch as the three disappeared beneath the waves.

* * *

Once in their true forms, the mermaids swam down to find Kaito. But he was nowhere to be found. Luchia grew worried, but her friends assured her that they would find him.  
Out of nowhere, at that very moment, came a voice, "Fancy seeing you again." The three looked in its direction to find three boys, the same ones Luchia encountered earlier, holding Kaito.  
"Kaito!" Luchia cried out.  
"Who are you three?!" Hanon interrogated.  
"Ah, please forgive us." the blue guy smirked, "We completely forgot to introduce ourselves."  
"We're the Triple Threat!" the three spoke in unison, "We serve Dr. Hishki!"  
"The rad-awesome Avery!" the green one introduced.  
"The cool and collected Christoph." the blue one spoke.  
"And the leader of the crew, Javer." the red one boasted.  
"We know about you mermaid princesses from those bumbling water demons." Avery spoke, "We know who you are, and how to beat you."  
"What do you mean?!" Rina demanded.  
"Simply put; we knew that girl, Luchia, would come running if her precious human was in danger." Javer answered, "So we plunged him under to spite your need to protect such a worthless life." The three growled at how easily they had been played. Especially Luchia. "But now, the dude's useless. A dead weight." At that, Javer threw Kaito over to the mermaids. Luchia quickly caught him, and as she did he regained consciousness.  
"Kaito, are you alright?" she asked.  
"I'll be fine." he replied, "But take care of those three first."  
"Right." Facing their new opponents, the Mermaid Princesses began to transform.

 _ **"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"**_

After transforming into their second forms, the girls faced off in their Live Stage.  
"If all you wanted was us, you didn't have to bring a hostage into this." Rina spoke.  
"Now that you have, we will not forgive you." Hanon threatened.  
"For Kaito, and all those you have hurt, we will defeat you!" Luchia proclaimed.  
"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!"  
So the three sung their song, "Perfect Harmony." Their song about facing the odds, of growing stronger and stronger, and spreading the love they shared. They sung with all their might, but the Triple Threat simply yawned at the effort. The song wasn't even fazing them. Once the Mermaid Princesses noticed, they were stunned.  
"Are you three done yet?" Christoph yawned.  
"How are you three unaffected by our song?!" Hanon demanded.  
"Simple. We were built to be immune to your songs." Avery elaborated, somehow bored.  
"And we have a song of our own." Javer told them. Just then, the three boys fitted headsets, and an orb of dark energy began to form around them.  
"It's showtime!" they proclaimed.  
Their song, "Playtime," had an exact opposite view on the idea of love. Their song described it as merely a plaything, a toy that could be messed around with. That it was simply a pleasure, and those who believed otherwise were fools. As they sung, the Triple Threat break danced inside their stage. Their song was infused with dark energy, which began to hurt the Mermaid Princesses. Its power was so great, that the three reverted to their mermaid selves.  
As the Triple Threat concluded their song, they called out, "That's the show!" Watching from the sidelines, Kaito was in just as much shock as the mermaids were. And while they were weakened, Dr. Hihski's robot appeared behind Triple Threat, and caught the mermaid princesses in its claws.  
"At long last, the mermaids are mine!" he cackled, "Now, the truth will be revealed. And I will become famous!" Kaito wasn't about to let that happen.  
He charged towards the robot, shouting, "Let them go! Right now!" But the robot activated fans on its torso, stopping him dead in the water.  
"Luchia! Hanon!" Rina called to her friends, "We have no choice." Reaching for her pendant, Rina took out her green pearl. Luchia and Hanon followed suite, removing their pearls from their pendants. The three pearls shined, and floated away from the Mermaid Princesses. The Aqua and Green pearls floated past Kaito towards shore. But Luchia's Pink pearl went straight to Kaito.  
As he caught the pearl, Luchia requested, "Keep my pearl safe, Kaito." Kaito understood the responsibility Luchia was passing on to him.  
So he told her, "I will. And I will save you. I promise." Luchia was heartened by his promise. But then, she, Hanon, and Rina were put inside glass containers.  
"We have what we need. Return to base." Dr. Hihski ordered. With that, the robot and Triple threat took off for a deeper region of the ocean.

* * *

Kaito returned to the land, crestfallen and weary. As soon as he reached shore, he collapsed onto his knees. He had failed. Failed to protect Luchia from Dr. Hishki. Failed to keep her safe, like he had promised his brother Gaito. How could he face everyone?  
"Kaito!" he heard Seira call to his left. But Kaito did not bother to even look up as she, Nagisa, and Masahiro came up to him. "Kaito, where's Luchia?" Seira asked. Kaito held out the pink pearl Luchia gave him, and tears began to stream down his face. Seira gasped, for she figured out that her mentor had been captured. Masahiro looked at the Green pearl he held, and Nagisa held out the Aqua pearl.  
"Luchia." Kaito cried, then he screamed, "LUCHIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

* * *

 **Oh dear. Looks like this is the end of the Mermaid Princesses. Or is it? After all, this story isn't called Pichi Pichi Duo for nothing. What do I mean by that? Well, stay tuned to find out.**


	13. Dual Voices

**Well, what do you know? Two uploads on the same day. Happy dance time! *does the coffee grinder***

 **Now, before I begin this chapter, I'd like to bring up something. Please don't be mad at me, but someone has been spamming me for the last week to update this story. I get this story is awesome, but please do try to exercise patience. Especially since I may not be able to keep my updating schedule due to my summer job at a campsite. I am sorry to say this, but I will be away for a good portion of the summer doing so.**

 **Now then, we get to reveal why this story piece is called 'Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo'. So pull out your mics, cause it's time for the music to shine again!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Mermaid Melody. All rights to their respective owners.**

* * *

Chapter 13: Dual Voices

Luchia felt groggy and weary as she became conscious again. Her whole body felt as limp as a wet noodle. She couldn't even register anything as she opened her eyes. But what she did see shocked her whole body awake.  
She, Hanon, and Rina were bound by their hands and tails by mechanical claws. There were computer monitors and lab equipment strewn about the room. Luchia wasn't sure how she and her friends had gotten here. She remembered Kaito's surfing tournament and rescuing Kaito. That was when she remembered the Triple Threat and getting captured. They had finally lost. Dr. Hishki had them at last.  
As Hanon and Rina awoke, Dr. Hishki strolled in and muttered, "So, the specimens awake."  
"Where are we?! What's going on?!" Luchia demanded.  
"Simple, Pink Pearl Mermaid Princess," Dr. Hishki answered, "You are in my lab. Somewhere in the Pacific Ocean."  
"Why did you bring us here?!" Hanon interrogated, "Weren't you going to reveal our secret to everyone?!"  
"Don't flatter yourselves. Your sending your pearls to that boy has put quite a monkey wrench in my plans. You see, I need both you and those accursed pearls to present valid data to my colleagues. Without them, it'd be simply pointless."  
"Well, aren't we lucky." Rina scoffed.  
"However, I'm not worried. I know who has those pearls." the doctor snickered, "They'll bring those items to me. And then, I'll let you three watch them suffer for always being a pain in my plans. Until then, sleep tight." He pulled a switch beside him, and the mermaid princesses were dropped into glass tubes filled with a weird, green liquid. Once inside, they were sealed in. The three tried to break out of their imprisonment, but it was no use. Eventually, the sedative in the water began to take effect, as the mermaid captives began to grow drowsy. And then, they were asleep once more.

* * *

Meanwhile, out in the open ocean, Karen, Noelle, Coco, Seira, and Hippo were searching for where Dr. Hishki took their friends. They had called in all the help they could to find where the doctor was hiding, using every available resource they had. But even with all the help and effort, they simply could not find Dr. Hishki's hidden base. It was even harder to find them because the Pearl Radar Hippo always carried was of no use, since it read the pearls energy signature. And since Luchia, Hanon, and Rina did not have their pearls, it was practically impossible to locate them.  
After having searched the whole afternoon, Karen and the others went back to Pearl Piari to rest.  
"This is even harder than it was finding the Gaito's castle." Karen moaned.  
"But we can't give up!" Seira told her friends, "Luchia, Hanon, and Rina are all counting on us. We have to find them, and fast!"  
"That's right!" Hippo came in, "That human scientist wants to reveal the truth of you Mermaid Princesses to the world. If that happens..." He did not need to finish that sentence. If they failed to save their friends, the outcome was what they were always warned about.  
"But where else can we look?" Coco pondered, "I believe we've scoured the whole North Pacific, and we haven't found a trace as to where they could be."  
"But they have to be somewhere nearby." Noelle pointed out.  
"Maybe we could use one of us as bait to find their hiding place." Seira suggested, "He might be after all of us if he's wanting to reveal us to the world."  
"No way! I am not going through that again!" Karen refuted. She remembered the plan Rina had made before to find Gaito's castle, and how it almost went awry. There was no way they would pull a stunt like that again while she was around. With no other ideas, the girls headed for their rooms. And Seria still worried about how they would find Luchia.

* * *

The next day found Kaito standing on the beach with his surfboard. He wasn't out to practice today like usual. Rather, he was intending to go out to sea and search for Luchia. He felt like it was his fault she had been captured, and he wanted to make amends. Kaito fitted his pendant on, which now contained Luchia's pink pearl once more, and took a deep breath.  
But before he could take a step, he heard Nagisa and Masahiro call out, "Wait, Kaito!" Looking back, he saw the two boys rushing up to him. Their faces looked rather serious.  
"We need to talk." Masahiro spoke.  
"I don't have time right now guys." Kaito replied, "I've got something I need to do."  
Nagisa grabbed his wrist to stop him and told him, "This is important! We need to know something! Something you've been keeping from us!"  
"Let go of me!" Kaito ordered.  
"Not until you tell us about Hanon and her friends!" Nagisa shouted.  
Kaito didn't like the situation he was being put in. Although he knew about Luchia's secret, it was only because he pieced together the truth about her two sides. Because of it, he was bound by the risk of losing her to keep her identity secret. If he blabbed about Luchia being a mermaid, she would still turn into bubbles. He couldn't risk that with his friends, not even towards Nagisa and Masahiro.  
"Kaito, both Nagisa and I have been pondering things over for a long time." Masahiro elaborated, "Something has seemed just a tad funny with those mermaids we met. Every time they come to mind, we think of Hanon and Rina. But we want to know why?"  
"You're the only one who seems to know the most about those three mermaids, as well as Hanon, Rina, and Luchia." Nagisa added in, "So tell us: do you know something about them?"  
"If I tell you, you'll never see Hanon or Rina ever again." Kaito growled, "And I'll never see Luchia again."  
Seething, Nagisa responded, "Is that a threat?!"  
"It's a warning!" Kaito scolded, "If I told you what I knew, then Luchia, Hanon, and Rina would disappear forever."  
"Disappear?" Masahiro pondered. Then he pulled out the green pearl he had mysteriously received at the surfing tournament. Nagisa pulled out his aqua pearl too.  
"I remember something, from when I was little." Masahiro told them, "That mermaids could not reveal themselves to humans. If they did, they would turn into bubbles."  
"I remember something too." Nagisa perked, "Mermaids could take on the appearance of humans, and live among people. But when they touch water, they return to their true form." Then it all clicked. And Kaito could see the gears turning in their heads.  
"You don't mean to say..." Nagisa started.  
"...That Hanon and Rina..." Masahiro picked up.  
"Are MERMAIDS?!" they exclaimed in unison.  
"Then that means that something has happened to them." Masahiro surmised after a daunting pause.  
"We gotta go save them!" Nagisa cried out.  
"But first, we'll need to find them." Kaito pointed out.  
Kaito was about to take off for the ocean when Masahiro suggested, "How about we use my boat? We want to help find them too."

* * *

A few minutes later, the boys were sailing over the waves, and out into the open waters. They had already outfitted themselves with their scuba gear, and were looking for some area to anchor the boat and search for their friends. After finding such a spot, the three boys dove under.  
It was still a strange revelation for Nagisa and Masahiro to comprehend. Their girlfriends, whom they had come to love, were really mermaids. Kaito had further explained that they and Luchia were Mermaid Princesses. He also told them that the pearls they had were their sources of power. So they needed to find where they were, and fast.  
But then, while they were diving, the three pearls began to glow. The guys held them up, and they shot a beam of light down and to their left. Kaito figured they had to have been reacting to Luchia and the others, so he had Masahiro and Nagisa follow him. They followed the beams of light a good distance down, until they saw a massive, underwater facility. Dr. Hishki's hidden laboratory! Quickly approaching it, the three found a vent that led inside. So they proceeded.  
Once inside, the boys abandoned the gear and rushed to look for their friends. But the base was a labyrinth of corridors and dead-ends, with no indication of where everything was. But, the pearls continued to aid them. Whenever they were heading in the right direction, the pearls would continue to shine. They continued for some distance, until the glow grew brighter. They turned to find that the pearls were directing therm to a sealed room.  
"Are you ready?" Kaito asked his companions.  
"Ready as we'll ever be." Masahiro answered. So Kaito opened the door.

Inside the room, they spotted Luchia, Hanon, and Rina inside glass tubes filled with a strange green water. All three didn't look awake, but they were still alive.  
"Hanon!" Nagisa cried out, rushing to Hanon's cage.  
"Rina!" Masahiro mimicked. and Kaito rushed up to Luchia's cage. It tore at all three of them to see the mermaids like this. They had to save them.  
Out of nowhere, Dr. Hishki's voice came, "Well well. What do we have here?" Kaito, Nagisa, and Masahiro turned around to see the doctor enter the room, flanked by the water demons and the Triple Threat. "I see you are very interested in these mermaid princesses." he continued, "Shall I tell you more about them?"  
"Forget it! Let them go!" Kaito demanded.  
"Why should I? What good reason do you have that would convince me that I should release my specimens?"  
"Because they are our friends!" Nagisa retorted, "They are very important to us. Now let them go!"  
"I will not! They are my specimens, and I shall do with them as I see fit!"  
"You're a monster!" Masahiro growled, "A heartless monster!"  
"Am I?!" Dr. Hishki roared back, "I'm not the one who thought only of myself! Tell me, boys, did your mermaids ever tell you who they were? Did they ever once reveal who they really were?"  
"No. They didn't." Nagisa muttered, "Not directly."  
"They loved us, just as much as we loved them." Masahiro added, "They couldn't reveal who they were because they loved us."  
"They've saved us. They let us know they were close by." Kaito finished, "Now it's our turn to save them!"  
"I grow tired of this." Dr. Hishki sighed, "Lady Bat, Linhua, Arara, take care of these three." So the water demons stood before the boys, preparing their dark songs.  
"Believe us when we say we are going to enjoy our revenge." Lady Bat spoke.  
"It will be a beautiful end for you." Linhua commented.  
"I hate to hurt boys, but I won't feel bad about you three." Arara chimed.  
Tearing off his pendant, Kaito cried, "I will protect Luchia, like I promised. LUCHIA!"  
"HANON!"  
"RINA!"  
All of a sudden, the pearls lights radiated out and blinded everybody in the room. Kaito, Nagisa, and Masahiro glanced into the light as best a they could. In it, they saw a beautiful maiden with flowing, blond hair, in a white dress, wielding a caduceus. Masahiro and Nagisa were dumbfounded by the sight, but Kaito recognized her as the sea goddess: Aqua Regina.  
 _Prince of the Panterassa, do you love Luchia?_ she asked Kaito.  
"Y-Yes, Aqua Regina-sama." Kaito replied.  
 _Nagisa and Masahiro, do you love the Aqua and Green Pearl Princesses, Hanon and Rina?_ she directed to the other two.  
"Yes!" Nagisa answered.  
"Of course!" Masahiro responded.  
Knowing the truth of their answers, Aqua Regina spoke, _Listen well. A great calamity shall befall the world in due time, and both the sea and the land will fall into peril. The power of the Mermaid Princesses is no longer enough to stop it on their own. However, you are able to aid them. Your love must be combined with the seven Mermaid Princesses to defeat this new evil. And now, I grant you this power. Use it to save the ones you love._ As Aqua Regina disappeared, three rainbow lights melded into the three boys. And with it, a new power awoke.

Suddenly, the boys began to transform. It was a similar transformation to the Mermaid Princesses. Kaito, Nagisa, and Masahiro had on white dress shirts, fitted with a bowtie that was the same color as their corresponding mermaid princess. Vests of these colors fitted over their shirts, and slacks of the same color were fitted too. Three mics, with the pearls fitted on them, rested in their hands. When the transformation was complete, the boys stared in awe at the new clothes they wore.  
"What just happened?" Kaito wondered.  
"This is very strange." Masahiro inputted.  
"But they are pretty cool." Nagisa commented.  
Then, as the light that blinded their adversaries began to fade, Aqua Ragina spoke, _Now sing, Princes of the Sea. Sing with the love you have for the Pink Pearl, Aqua Pearl, and Green Pearl Mermaid Princesses._ When the light faded, a familiar tune rang out in the boys Live Stage. While he heard it, Kaito remembered the times when he encountered Luchia, that he heard her sing this song.  
 _Luchia,_ he thought, _with your power bestowed to me, I sing this song.  
_ "Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!" Kaito called out. And he began singing "Legend of Mermaid."  
Nagisa and Masahiro were surprised by Kaito's sudden desire to sing. But the melody of the song brought up the memories of the times when they had met Hanon and Rina as mermaids. Spurred on, Nagisa joined in during the pre-chorus of the song. And Masahiro shortly followed into the chorus.

 ** _Nanairo no kaze fukarete  
tooi misaki wo mezashiteta_**

 _ **Yoake mae kikoeta MERODII**_  
 _ **Sore wa totemo natsukashii uta**_

 _ **Hisashi no sora he to habutaku toritachi**_  
 _ **Saa takarajima ni nukera chikamichi**_

 _ **Nanatsu no umi no rakuen**_  
 _ **Arasho no yoru no ato ni wa tsutaeru**_  
 _ **tame inochi ga mat umareru**_

 _ **Nanatsu no kumi no MERODIA**_  
 _ **Darerno ga itsuka wa koko wo**_  
 _ **Tabidatsu hi ga kitemo**_  
 _ **Watashi wa wasurenai**_

The boys had no idea how they knew the lyrics to the song, but something inside them seemed to know what to sing. The effect of it was quite a surprise for the water demons, Dr. Hishki, and the Triple Threat. They were gripping their heads as the boys sung. The power of the song becoming too much for them to handle.  
"This is impossible!" Dr. Hishki cried out. Behind the singers, the cages holding the mermaid princesses began to crack.  
When the boys finished, they cried out, "Love Shower Pitch!" The instant they did, the glass finally shattered. Kaito, Nagisa, and Masahiro each turned around and managed to catch Luchia, Hanon, and Rina.

"Luchia, please." Kaito spoke as he knelt down and rested Luchia in his lap, "Please wake up! Luchia!"  
"Hanon, please be alright!" Nagisa begged, holding Hanon close to him.  
"Rina, I'm here. Please, come back!" Masahiro whispered as he held Rina in his arms. Then, Luchia, Hanon, and Rina's eyes began to flutter open.  
"Kaito." Luchia muttered.  
"Nagisa." Hanon whispered, hugging him back.  
"Masahiro." Rina called softly, stroking his cheek. When the boys noticed they were awake, they couldn't help but burst into tears.  
"I've found you, my Mermaid Princess." Kaito said to Luchia. That was when Hanon and Rina realized that Nagisa and Masahiro knew who they were.  
"How did you find out?" Rina asked them both.  
"We just pieced it together." Nagisa answered, "Though, it did take us a while."

"Rina," Masahiro spoke first, "I understand now what you have to do. You have a responsibility to the sea, and a big one at that. But, I don't want you to carry that burden alone anymore."  
"Masahiro, what are you saying?"  
"Mermaid or human, it doesn't matter to me. For I love you for you Rina." Rina couldn't believe what she was hearing. But it was something she had hoped against all hope that Masahiro would say. Breaking down in tears, Rina hugged close to him, taking comfort in the sincerity of his words.

"Hanon, why didn't you tell me all this?" Nagisa asked, "You saved me all those times, and not once did I get to thank you for it."  
"Dummy!" Hanon scoffed, but then softened her expression, "If I had told you, it would have been all over for us. I would have..." But then, she took notice as Nagisa held her hand.  
"I won't let that happen. Promise." Hanon felt elated at Nagisa's conviction, as bold and unrealistic as it was. But it was what she loved about Nagisa. Her Nagisa.  
As for Luchia and Kaito, there was nothing to be said. It had already been established a long time ago. And the two were relieved and happy to be reuntied once more.

"Ugh! I think I'm gonna be sick!" Lady Bat spat in disgust. Her outburst brought the couples attention back to their present situation. This fight was not over yet. However, Javer led his companions Avery and Christoph in front of the water demons.  
"Step aside, wannabes." he scorned, "Let the pros show you how it's done." The water demons were infuriated by their attitude. But they couldn't do anything to retaliate. The boys' singing had drained them of their energy for their songs. So the baton was passed, unwillingly, to Triple Threat.  
But Kaito, Nagisa, and Masahiro stood before them, ready to defend the Mermaid Princesses.  
"We won't let you win!" Kaito challenged, "We will defeat you and protect those we cherish!" Unexpectedly, a pink, aqua, and green light came out of the guys' mics, and went into the Mermaid Princesses pendants, becoming their pearls. Empowered once more, the three began their transformation.

 _ **"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"**_

Once they transformed, Luchia requested, "Kaito, let us sing with you."  
"We're all in this together." Hanon pointed out, "So let's finish this together."  
"I hope you don't mind sharing the spotlight." Rina teased. Remembering Aqua Regina's words, the guys gladly accepted the aid.  
As the Mermaid Princesses changed into their second forms, the boys had a change in costume as well. A slight change, with the addition of blazers (jackets) that were tinged the same color as their mermaid princess. But now, they were ready. And once they finished, Aqua Regina's form appeared before them once more.  
 _Now, Mermaid Princesses and Sea Princes,_ she proclaimed, _I grant you a new song, to share the connections you have with each other._ As the light entered the group's mics, a new melody began to play. A fast-paced, electronic melody with high energy.  
Taking Luchia's hand, Kaito whispered, "Let's do this. Together."  
Luchia nodded, and together the group shouted, "Pichi Pichi Duet, Live Start!"  
Their new song they acquired, "Bridges," spoke of their connections to each other. How each one of them worked to become intertwined. That even if storms raged, or their links crumbled, they would remain connected. And that they would connect with others, sharing in the joy and jubilation towards each other.  
The new song held tremendous power. The Triple Threat were wailing and crying out as the song seemed to hurt them. The water demons instantly vanished, unable to withstand its power. The room quaked, and the computer system began shorting out. The sight of his defeat stunned Dr. Hishki.  
"This... cannot be!" he muttered.  
When the song finished, the group concluded, "Love Shower Pitch! Would you like an encore?"  
"We weren't programmed to withstand this!" Avery screamed. Then, the mermaid princesses and the guys noticed that the Triple Threat were robots. Part of their clothes were torn, revealing servos and mechanical joints underneath. But the biggest shock was for Dr. Hishki.  
"No! No! NOO!" he yelled, "All my data... all my research... all I had on these mermaid princesses. It's gone! Ruined!" But that was the least of everyone's worries. For at that moment, the lab began to fall apart.  
"Boss, we have to escape." Javer advised.  
Pressing a button, Dr. Hishki replied, "Yes. Quite." As he and the Triple Threat were being lowered into the floor to their escape pod, the doctor threatened, "This is not over, Mermaid Princesses. I will have you. And then, I will reveal you to the world. And I will become the most famous scientist in history!" And he was jettisoned to safety.  
But the others had little time to escape, and almost no way out. The doorway the guys came in from was blocked by debris, and water began to flood the place.  
"What do we do?!" Nagisa began to panic.  
"Stay calm. We can find a way out." Masahiro assured, though not as confident in the idea himself. Luckily, Hanon spotted an opening in the wall, large enough for two people to fit through.  
"Over there!" she told everyone, "We can use that to escape." Everyone knew the plan. The boys would follow the mermaids into the opening, and be led out and away. With each pairing established, the group made their escape.  
When they were a good distance away, the six friends turned to see Dr. Hishki's base crumble into rubble as the facility imploded on itself. They had won the day, for now. But for how long?

* * *

The next thing Nagisa and Masahiro knew, they were waking up on the beach, the sun setting on the horizon.  
"What the-!" Nagisa exclaimed, "How'd we get here?!"  
"Was it all just a dream?" Masahiro questioned.  
But then, Rina's voice spoke from behind them, "It wasn't a dream." Looking behind them, the two saw her and Hanon looking over them.  
Standing up, Masahiro asked, "So it is true? That you are a mermaid? Both of you?" Both of them solemnly nodded in response. And just then, Nagisa hugged Hanon tightly.  
"This is so cool!" he cried, "The girl I love is a mermaid."  
With a serious look, Hanon pushed Nagisa away and chastised, "Dummy! Why don't you shout that out louder so that everyone hears!"  
"Sorry." Nagisa chuckled. And then, Hanon surprised him by kissing him.  
As for Rina, she and Masahiro stared into each others eyes, trying to understand what the other was thinking.  
After a little while, Masahiro pulled Rina into him and whispered, "I promise, I will protect your secret. But please, don't leave me. That is all I ask."  
"I promise." Rina answered, hugging him back.

Meanwhile, in the distance, Kaito and Luchia were siting at Kaito's secret cove. Luchia was still in mermaid form, and she held Kaito's hand.  
"Kaito," she spoke up, "Are you sure you don't want to to join the others?"  
"Nah. It's better this way." he told her, "It was a bit of a shock when I found out about you. I think they deserve time alone with Hanon and Rina." Luchia agreed, still trying to wrap her mind around all that had happened. Then she and Kaito looked at their pendants, both containing pink pearls.  
"Do you think it's over?" Luchia asked.  
"Nope. But as long as we're together, we can beat that Dr. Hishki." Kaito assured confidently. Their faces inched closer together, until they were sharing a kiss.

* * *

Next time,

Luchia: Seira isn't coming down from her room. Is something wrong?  
Hanon: I'm not sure. But I do feel funny.  
Luchia: Hanon! You're turning into a mermaid!  
Hanon: Luchia! You are too!  
Luchia: *screams* What's happening to us?!

 **Next time on Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo,  
Unnatural Changes  
**  
Luchia: What will Kaito think if he sees us like this?


	14. Unnatural Changes

**Hey guys. Sorry for the late update, but when you've got to work weeks at a time, you've got to work weeks at a time. Especially when you got no access to most Internet functions while at work.**

 **But anyways, now we reach the point after the meaning has been discovered. As you saw in the last chapter, these chapters from here on will have previews of what's to come.**

 **Hope you're ready, cause it's time to find out what happens next after that big battle.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Mermaid Melody. All rights to appropriate owners.**

 **Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!**

* * *

Chapter 14:  
Unnatural Changes

On a summer evening, a long limousine rode up in front of Pearl Piari. And from it, Seira stepped out after having enjoyed some time with Hugo.  
"Thank you, Hugo-san." Seira thanked.  
"Seira, just call me Hugo." Hugo requested, "After all, we're friends."  
"Right. We're... friends." Seira couldn't help but blush, though she did try to hide it.  
"Well, Seira, would you like to hang out tomorrow?" Hugo asked, "After all, we have the day off."  
"R-Really? W-Well, I would love to."  
"Excellent. Then I'll be sure to come by at noon. Farewell." With that, Hugo's limo drove off. And Seira made her way into the hotel, giddy for tomorrow with Hugo.

* * *

That night, Seira had a bizarre dream. She was in a strange place, with double-helixes floating around, and strange birds flew overhead. In the center of it all stood a huge, stone tower. But Seira recognized where she was. She had once been absorbed by the being that lived here. An ancient being.  
In that same instant of realization, a glowing figure appeared above her. He had six angel wings, long, light-green hair, and a Roman-style outfit. The ancient being, Mikeru. The sight of him frightened Seira.  
"Your power is mine!" Mikeru proclaimed as his wings shot out towards Seira. She cringed back, remembering when she had been absorbed the first time. But then, the space around her turned black, a dark void. To her right, a light shone, and some figures appeared in it. Seven of the figures were girls, and seven were guys. But only their shadows showed, so Seira could not identify who they were.  
"Awaken them." Mikeru's voice echoed, "Awaken the seven duos."

* * *

As dawn came up, Seira awoke from the dream slightly disturbed. What was Mikeru doing in her dream? And what did he mean when he said to awaken the seven duos? Seira shook her head, as it was only a dream. So she swung her legs over the bed, preparing to get ready for the day. But the moment she stood up, Seira lost her balance and face-planted on the ground. Confused, Seira looked back at her legs, only to realize they weren't legs, but her orange mermaid tail.  
With an ear-splitting squeal, Seira cried out, "LUCHIA!"

When everyone went up to see what was wrong, they were shocked to see Seira in her mermaid form, while out of water. It made absolutely sense.  
"What's going on?!" Hanon exclaimed.  
"Why is Seira a mermaid when she isn't even in water?!" Coco gasped.  
Wanting to keep the situation calm, Nikora spoke in a stern yet calm voice, "Alright everyone, calm down. Let's not panic."  
"But how is Seira in her mermaid form?" Luchia brought back up. It was quite a head-scratcher. How could Seira have transformed out of water? The person who was the most worried about things was Seira.  
"Will I stay this way permanently?" she asked worriedly.  
After a quick bit of pondering, Nikora told them, "I'm not sure. This sort of change is not normal for us mermaids."  
"I've got an idea!" Noelle perked up, "When we are in water, we change back into mermaid form, right? What if it has simply reversed for Seira? What if she can change back in water?" Everyone pondered the idea, skeptical at first at how valid it was. Was it really possible that the change between human and mermaid form had reversed?  
"I don't think that's it." Rina spoke out.  
"But, it's worth trying." Hanon argued. Pretty soon, Hanon and Karen had made the bath to test Noelle's theory. Luchia and Noelle carried Seira into the bath. Everyone waited, hoping that Seira would change back. But after a long wait, nothing happened. Seira still had her tail.  
"And I was sure that was the problem." Noelle moaned.  
"Maybe I can be of some help." Taki offered as she came into the room. Holding out her crystal ball, Taki began humming intensely. Everyone watched in anxiety at wat she would find.  
Before long, she told them, "It says this change is very unnatural." Everyone fell back at this obvious statement.  
"We know this is unnatural!" Karen said angrily, "What we want to know is why this is happening!"  
Calmly, Taki responded, "I was not finished." As everyone turned their attention to her, Taki informed, "The change is very unnatural. A balance that once existed inside Seira has been upset. But the cause is not by anything we have ever encountered before. It is..." Everyone leaned in to hear more, all in bated breath. "Entirely unknown." At this, everyone fell over once more. But Seira became very worried. What was happening to her? Was she becoming a mermaid permanently?

* * *

Meanwhile, out on the beach, Kaito stood facing the ocean, waiting for his friends to come. A lot had changed the last few days, some of it really sudden for him. The Triple Threat, Masahiro and Nagisa discovering their girlfriends were mermaids, and the power they acquired to aid the Mermaid Princesses. As Kaito waited, he went over what he and the other two boys were told by Aqua Regina. What was gonna happen now?  
In his pondering, Kaito heard Nagisa calling as he and Masahiro came up to him. Both looked like nothing had changed, but Kaito saw the difference in their eyes. They knew, and believed, that they found out who their mermaids were. Kaito had been in a similar spot once before. And he knew that this revelation would change them forever.  
As they approached, Nagisa asked, "What's going on Kaito? Why'd you call us out here?"  
"I want to give you guys these." he replied, holding out a pair of pendants like the one he wore, "So you guys can hold onto your pearls." Taking the pendants, Nagisa and Masahiro both pulled out their pearls that they got during the incident the other day, and put the pearls in them.  
"What did that lady call us back at the lab?" Nagisa inquired.  
With a grunt, Kaito answered, "She's called Aqua Regina. She is the goddess of the sea." Nagisa quickly put his hand over his mouth, afraid he had been disrespectful. "As for what she called us, she said we were Sea Princes."  
Holding up his pendant, Masahiro pointed out, "Having these pendants together makes me feel like we are like Rina and the others."  
"Well, we are, aren't we?" Nagisa told him proudlywhile puffing his chest out. After which, the three boys shared a quick laugh, like there wasn't a care in the world.  
"Oh yeah, we should take the girls out for Tanabata tonight." Kaito suggested.  
"What do you mean?" Nagisa quizzed.  
Realizing the reason why, Masahiro pieced together, "You want to do something together, now that we all know our girlfriend's true selves. Am I right?"  
"Something like that." Kaito admitted, "Tonight is actually the anniversary of when Luchia and I first met. But, I want to start a new celebration with you guys."  
"Yeah. That'd be awesome!" Nagisa beamed. With the plan set, the guys headed for Pearl Piari to invite Luchia, Hanon, and Rina out for Tanabata.

* * *

Back at the hotel, things had simmered down since the morning shock occurred. Luchia was working on some schoolwork with Rina, and was struggling quite a bit with some of the questions.  
"Luchia, settle down." Rina eased, "You're doing those math problems all wrong."  
"Aw! Why did math have to be so hard?!" Luchia moaned.  
"If you don't do well on problems like those, then how do you expect to do well on the final exam?" Hanon teased, "At this rate, you might be taking summer school."  
"You're not helping Hanon." Rina chastised.  
"Well, it's true. Anyway, I'm gonna check on Seira. Good luck Luchia."  
"Hanon!" Luchia shouted. But Rina managed to calm her down and get back to the math questions at hand. Not a minute later did they hear Hanon let out a squeal from the top of the stairs. Reaching the staircase with all haste, the two saw that Hanon was in her mermaid form, while out of water.  
"Hanon, what's going on?!" Luchia began to ask, "Why are you... like this?"  
"How should I know?!" Hanon retorted, "Does it look like I wanted to change like this?!"  
"Calm down Hanon." Rina spoke to ease the tension, "Let's just get you to your room before someone else sees you like this." With that, Rina and Luchia carried Hanon to her room as carefully as they could.

A little later, Kaito rang the doorbell to the hotel to let everyone know they were coming in.  
Once inside, Taki appeared out of nowhere and spoke, "The strange tides have returned." Her sudden appearance startled all three boys.  
"Gah! Who's this old lady?" Nagisa exclaimed.  
But before that could be answered, Karen moved Taki out of their way, grumbling, "You can't just appear out of the blue like that." Nikora soon approached the three boys and apologized for Taki's sudden action.  
"She just can't seem to control herself for some reason." Nikora explained sheepishly, but then asked, "But, what are you doing here?"  
"We came to take Rina, Luchia, and Hanon out for Tanabata." Masahiro explained.  
"I'm not sure this is the best time for that." Nikora told them solemnly.  
"What's wrong?" Nagisa asked, "Are they sick?"  
Well, honestly-" Suddenly, they heard Coco give a huge squeal upstairs. With urgency, the four made their way to her. Nikora did not bother to ask Nagisa and Masahiro to stay behind, since she knew that they figured Hanon and Rina's secret. So they knew about all the mermaids at Pearl Piari.

Once they disappeared from the lobby, Hugo entered the hotel. Today he wore a red tank-top and tan cargo pants. He looked forward to hanging out with Seira today, and hoped that today would be amazing. With his mind brimming with excitement, he ventured up to the stairs for Seira's room. But before he even took the first set of steps, Noelle popped out of nowhere and blocked his path.  
"Hello. How may I help you?" she asked.  
"Uh, hi. I'm here to see Seira." Hugo told her.  
"Oh, I'm sorry. Seira's not feeling well today."  
"What do you mean?"  
Pushing him out the door, Noelle explained, "I'm afraid she can't come out today. We'll tell her you came by. See ya." And with that, Hugo was shoved out, and the door closed behind him. He was quite perplexed by what had just happened. If Seira was sick, couldn't he have at least gone in to see her, or hope she would get better? Deciding on an alternative, he dialed her phone number on his cell.

* * *

Up in her room, Seira felt horrible. Not because of her sudden transformation, but because she was gonna miss her date with Hugo. And she had been looking forward to it so much. Yet here she was, laying in bed, her covers hiding her tail and everything up to her neck to keep her form hidden.  
Just as Seira felt like the day couldn't get any worse, her phone began to ring. But it was up on her desk, across the room. Somehow, Seira had a sense that she should answer it. She just had to. Throwing off the sheets, Seira set herself on the ground and began crawling across the floor towards her phone. It was slow going, but Seira worked her way to the phone as fast as she could, while avoiding being seen from the window. Eventually, she finally pulled herself up onto the desk, and picked up the phone before the answering machine could pick up.  
"Hello? This is Seira." she answered.  
"Seira, hi. It's me, Hugo." Hugo replied on the other end.  
"Hugo-san?!"  
"I just wanted to call and see if you were alright.. You don't sound sick to me. Is everything okay?"  
"Well, kind of. It's rather hard to explain."  
"I see. Can I at least come up to see you? One of your friends kept me out." Suddenly, Seira felt like she was between a rock and a hard place. She really wanted Hugo to come up, and just spend time with him. Even if they weren't going anywhere, she still wanted to be with him. Then again, if something were to happen, Hugo would find out about her being a mermaid. And if he found out, she would turn into bubbles. But still, she really wanted to see Hugo. What was she to do?  
Finally deciding on a course of action, Seira replied, "Give me a couple of minutes, then go ahead and come up. If my friends try to stop you, tell them I asked you to come."  
"I'll figure some way to your room. Don't worry, this isn't my first time sneaking in." Hugo told her, "I'll be up there soon." And he hung up.

Once Seira hung up on her end, she heard Luchia come in asking, "Seira, why did you do that?" Seira looked over to find her just entering her room, a look of concern showing on her face.  
As Luchia carried Seira back to her bed, Seira told her, "I felt like I needed to. I just want Hugo to be nearby, even if we can't go anywhere."  
"Seira, it's great that you care for Hugo-san. But you must remember the risks involved with being a Mermaid Princess."  
"But Luchia, I couldn't just push him away. We agreed that today we would hang out. You never pushed Kaito away when there was a risk involved, didn't you?"  
"That was when I had control of everything. Seira, too many things are going on that risk everything you hold dear. That's too much of a risk to take." After covering Seira up to her neck, Luchia assured, "Even if it's not today, you may meet Hugo again some other time." With that, she began to leave the room.  
But just as she was reaching the door, a weird flash of light erupted around her, blinding Seira. When it faded, Luchia fell forward onto the ground. When Seira saw why, she found her mentor to be in her mermaid form.

* * *

Meeting up in Hanon's room, Luchia, Hanon, Rina, Kaito and the guys, and Nikora were scratching their heads over what was going on.  
"Why is this happening to us?" Luchia griped.  
"Don't look at us." Kaito responded, "It's not like we caused this."  
"I wonder." Nikora pondered.  
"Wonder what, Nikora-san?" Masahiro asked.  
"If this is part of a change from Aqua Regina-sama." she spoke.  
"You mean giving Kaito, Nagisa, and Masahiro their powers?" Rina wondered.  
"It's the first for a human to be given the powers of a Mermaid Princess."  
"Sea Prince." Nagisa corrected. But Nikora paid it no mind.  
"But I wonder; is it possible that this new power is bringing about this change?"  
The group pondered the thought for a bit, until Masahiro pointed out, "But if that were true, wouldn't our pearls react to it? And if this involves us, how come Seira and Coco changed too?" That threw a monkey wrench in things.  
Just then, Rina was enveloped in a light too bright to look at. As it dissipated, Rina fell forward as her legs became a mermaid tail. But Masahiro was quick to react, and caught her before she hit the ground. But now, they were running out of time to find what was causing these changes.

* * *

Meanwhile, Karen had gone over to Subaru's room to get some answers. If anyone could figure out of these sudden changes, it had to be him. But before she could, his door swung open as the man himself appeared before her.  
"Ah, Karen. Just who I wanted to see." he said when he saw her there.  
"What do you mean, Subaru?" Karen wondered.  
"Come see." he ushered. Over at his desk, Subaru directed Karen's attention to a series of graphs displaying very erratic readings. "I think there have been some strange wave signals coming into the hotel." he told her.  
"Strange wave signals?" Karen inquired.  
"Yeah. When I got up early this morning, my instruments showed that a strong signal had come into this place. the length of the time recorded was about half a second. Then, a little later, I spotted the same reading at about the same time I heard one of your friends cry out."  
"What are you saying Subaru? I can't follow."  
"I've recorded this pattern four times. Five as of now. I heard something was going on with everyone else outside, so my guess is that these readings link with something happening around the place."  
Karen could not begin to believe how right Subaru was. He may have just found the cause for everyone's sudden transformations. Looking at the readings further, Karen also found that they were all coming from a single source, in the same location. Without a doubt, Karen had found her answer to the problem.  
"What the-? It's happening again!" Subaru exclaimed as he noticed a new reading came in. Afraid she was next, Karen raced out of the room, startling Subaru in the process. But she barely made it very far down the hall before she too transformed into her mermaid form.  
"Karen?! what's wrong?" Subaru called. Fear rushed throughout Karen as she lay there, waiting for him to find her. But then, Karen got pulled into the room she was next to by Kaito, and escaped being found out.

After explaining her discovery to everyone, Karen concluded, "Dr. Hishki must be responsible for us transforming."  
After a quick bit of pondering it over, Kaito said, "No mistake. He has to be responsible. But how did he do it?"  
"Let's worry about that later." Noelle urged, "We have to find him before we all revert to our true forms. If we stop him, maybe the process will reverse."  
"Yeah! Let's do it!" Nagisa cried out.  
"Hold on!" Nikora stopped, "Even if we find him, how can we be sure you can stop them?" She did have a point. If the boys managed to find Dr. Hishki, the water demons, or Triple Threat, who's to say they could take them on?  
"We can do it." Kaito pointed out, "We'll find the cause and put a stop to it.  
"Right. With our power." Masahiro reminded, holding up his pendant with the green pearl inside. Everyone agreed that they were their best chance to fight Dr. Hishki when they found him, or whoever worked with him. After that, the boys took off for where Karen discovered the source was.

* * *

The boys quickly discovered the problem in a nearby channel. The water demons Lady Bat, Linhua, and Arara had been using a special kind of remote with a transceiver to cause problems. And they were enjoying the torment they were causing.  
"Those creeps!" Nagisa seethed, "They were behind it!"  
"Well then, this will be an easy problem to resolve." Masahiro smirked.  
"Right. Let's do this. For our friends." Kaito told them.

During that, Seira waited in anxiety for Hugo to arrive. He said he would find a way into her room, but that made Seria worry. How could she keep her mermaid self a secret with him? What could she do if she had no control over her transformation?  
"Maybe Luchia was right." she told herself, "Maybe some risks are too great for something like this." Taking a deep sigh, Seira looked out the window to spot Hugo climbing onto her balcony. And the worry inside her grew.

Back at the channel, the water demons were filled with glee at their near victory.  
"Just one more Mermaid Princess, then Hishki-sama can capture them all in one fell swoop." Lady Bat laughed.  
"At last, we'll have beaten them." Arara cheered.  
"I wouldn't say victory is yours yet." They heard a boy shout. Surprised, they turned as Kaito, Nagisa, and Masahiro came up to them.  
"Great. More nuisances." Lady Bat grumbled.  
"Hang on. Haven't we met before?" Linhua pointed out.  
"You sure did." Kaito told them, "If you don't remember, here's a little reminder." Calling upon the power of their pearls, the boys summoned the power they were given by Aqua-Regina.

 ** _"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"  
_**  
As soon as they transformed, the water demons realized the trouble they were in.  
"Hurting our friends was a bad move." Nagisa spoke.  
"Now you have to deal with us." Masahiro added.  
"For the Mermaid Princesses we love, we will stop you." Kaito finished.  
"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!" The song the sung this time was called "Guardian Love." A steady paced, light song that spoke about the love the boys held, and how they would protect it if it should be threatened. It came with a warning, that they would protect the ones they cared for. Like a shield, they would shelter those closest to them. Lady Bat tried to use the transceiver one last time while grimacing through the song, but it exploded when she tried pushing the button.  
When they were done, the boys shouted, "Love Shower Pitch!"  
"I grow tired of this!" Lady Bat grunted.  
"We won't lose again!" Linhua retorted.  
"I can't believe I was upstaged by boys!" Arara exclaimed. And they all vanished. With their work done, the three boys hurried back to Pearl Piari.

* * *

Then, from Seira's windowsill, Hugo was blinded by a sudden flash of light. The light caused him to stumble back, and he fell over the balcony. Just then, Seira (now in human form) managed to grab his hand and saved him from falling.  
"Hold on, Hugo-san!" Seira cried out.  
"Th-thanks, Seira." Hugo replied. Using the railing, Hugo managed to clamber back onto the balcony.  
As soon as he did, Seira told him, "Let me get changed, then we can go."  
"Sure." Hugo shrugged. In her bathroom, Seira sighed with relief that she returned to normal in the nick of time.

* * *

That night, in a graveyard in Tsutsujimisaki, Kaito set a bouquet of white flowers at a particular pair of graves, along with Luchia who set a seashell bracelet down in respect.  
"Another year has passed, mom and dad." Kaito said to them. Luchia held Kaito's hand, hoping to ease any pain he had from their passing. Even though they weren't his real parents, both Kaito and Luchia wanted to pay their respects to the ones that raised him. When that was done, the duo joined Hanon, Rina, and their boyfriends on a hill overlooking the sea.  
Sighing dramatically, Nagisa moaned, "I wish you could stay in your mermaid form?"  
"Huh? What do you mean?" Hanon huffed, "Am I not good enough like this?"  
"I'd rather hang out with the true you! I like the real you, not the disguise you put up." That caught Hanon off-guard.  
But then, Masahiro pointed out, "I don't think it matters anymore. Mermaid or human, I know that this is their true selves."  
"Yeah." Rina agreed, "Besides, it'd be hard to live on land with a tail all the time." They all shared a quick laugh, enjoying each others company.  
Just then, Luchia perked up by saying, "Oh yeah! Hanon, Rina, let's give them their gifts."  
"Our gifts?" Kaito quizzed. Then, the girls each gave them a bracelet matching the color of their pearl (though Kaito's was a bit more red).  
"It was going to be an anniversary gift, for when we first met." Luchia told them.  
"Now, it's an anniversary of the Sea Princes." Hanon inputted. The guys didn't know what to say, save thank you. And the three spent the romantic night under the Tanabata sky.

* * *

On a beach elsewhere, Hugo and Seira sat in each others company, staring at the countless stars in the sky.  
"If I recall," Hugo spoke to break the silence, "Tanabata is when the two lovers, Altair and Vega, come together after being apart for so long."  
"That's right!" Seira beamed.  
"Two lovers, kept apart from each other. Makes me wonder..." Seira figured he was thinking about her mermaid self. And she knew this night made him wonder if they could be together for real.  
 _Hugo, will you discover that I'm the mermaid you're looking for?_ she thought, _I feel the same. And I hope we can be together then too._ With that thought, Seira rested next to Hugo, and Hugo held her close to him affectionately. For that night, two distant lovers were together once more.

* * *

 **Karen: Onee-san, what are you doing?**  
 **Noelle: I'm going to discover the secrets of love.**  
 **Karen: Not you too. I know Luchia and the others are into love, but I didn't think you would be too.**  
 **Noelle: Well, I don't want to be left out.**

 **Next time on Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo,**  
 **A Damsel For Love**

 **Karen: *sigh* Onee-san.**


	15. A Damsel for Love

**And we are back after so long. First off, apologies for not updating like normal. But when you've got work, you kinda don't get the chance to use a computer. Especially if that work is at a camp site. Lol.**

 **Secondly, we will be introducing a new mermaid and human pairing. Who is it? Well, read on and find out!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Mermaid Melody. All rights to appropriate owners.**

 **Enjoy, fave, review, etc.**

* * *

Chapter 15:  
A Damsel for Love

On a cool, summer night, Noelle and Karen were out enjoying a nice, relaxing, no-water-demon swim. The two swam out, far from the coast of Pearl Piari. To Noelle, it was a chance to get out and stretch her tail from being cooped up in the hotel for so long. To Karen, however, it was a chance to be alone with her sister for the first time in forever. The two of them had never gotten the chance to be together like this, and Karen was glad for the chance.  
After a good deal of swimming, Noelle and Karen rested on a rock out at sea. They kept their tails somewhat submerged, so as to retain their mermaid form.  
"The moon sure is beautiful tonight." Karen said to start a conversation with her elder sister.  
"It sure is." Noelle sighed, "A romantic sight to be sure."  
Perplexed, Karen asked, "Onee-san, what are you saying?"  
"Must be nice, having someone to love like Subaru."  
"W-What?! I don't love Subaru!"  
"That's not what Rina tells me." Karen quickly turned red in the face, and Noelle chuckled at her sudden embarrassment. "Makes me wish, if I could have someone to love, even if it was forbidden."  
Don't say that, Onee-san!" Karen argued, "It's best you don't fall in love like Luchia and the others. We're Mermaid Princesses of the Arctic and Antarctic Kingdoms. We must stay focused on that fact." But Noelle wasn't listening, but instead was imagining what it would be like to be in love.

* * *

The next day at Maki's beach house, the Mermaid Princesses, Kaito, and Kaito's friends were busy waiting tables and serving meals. Well, all except Noelle. She was on her break, and was reading a romance fiction novel about a princess who is saved from disaster by a handsome prince.  
As she was getting to the part where the prince had to fight a dragon, she beamed, "So amazing! And so romantic!" With a loving sigh, Noelle dreamt that she was the princess, guarded in a castle by a mighty, three-headed dragon, each head being that of the water demons. Then, in a radiance of light, a lone knight in shining armor rode a majestic steed against the mighty fiend, sword drawn and yelling a mighty war cry. The dragon heads breathed fire over him, but the knight cut through with his sword, and fell the mighty beast. Then, he swooped in and rescued her from her imprisonment.  
Suddenly, Noelle was snapped out of her daydream when she heard a tray tip. It's contents threatened to splatter Noelle from head-to-toe.  
"Gotcha!" one of the boys, Daichi, called out as he rushed over, catching everything from falling and setting them back on Luchia's tray without spilling anything. With a great sigh of relief, Luchia thanked Daichi for his help.  
"I think you want to keep your food on the tray, not on someone's face." Daichi joshed. But Luchia paid it little attention as she returned to serving her meal. "You alright, Noelle?" he asked.  
"Y-Yes." Noelle stuttered, "But, how did you know my name?"  
"Maki-san told me who you were. He said you can be a bit of a bookworm." Realizing she still had her book on her, Noelle chuckled nervously as she tried to hide it from him. "Truth be told, I like that. Most girls are into makeup, or clothes, or getting boys to like them. But I like that you enjoy reading. Makes you unique."  
"W-Well, thank you." Noelle replied, flustered.  
Before he took off, Daichi told her, "Oh yeah, my name's Daichi. The guys and I are gonna go surfing a little later. When you get off work, you should come see us practice."  
"Y-Yes." With that, Daichi went back to work. And Noelle was left to ponder this new feeling she felt.

In the kitchen a little later, Noelle was helping Karen cleaning the dishes. or, trying to help clean. Noelle kept staring into space, thinking about the boy Daichi. His words about how he liked how Noelle was an avid reader could not help but make her feel elated.  
"Noelle. Noelle!" Karen shouted. Returning to earth, Noelle apologized for her daydreaming and immediately went back to work.  
"Karen, who was that Daichi guy?" she asked as she finished a set of dishes.  
"I wouldn't know, Onee-san. He's one of Kaito's friends." Karen replied. But then something came to mind after Noelle asked her the question. "Wait, why do you want to know about Daichi?!"  
"He said he liked that I was an reader. I just wanted to know more about him." she said wit a smile.  
Before Karen could ask further, Maki came in and told them, "Alright girls, you're all done for the day."  
"Thank you, Maki-san." Noelle responded, rushing out of the restaurant.  
"What is up with you, Onee-san?" Karen pondered after she left.

* * *

Rushing onto the beach, Noelle immediately spotted the boys out surfing on the waves. But then she also saw Luchia on the beach, with what looked like a bento resting in her lap. But then she remembered that Luchia liked to watch Kaito practice. Noelle scanned for Daichi, and spotted him as he wiped out on another wave. Among the three of them, Noelle noticed that Daichi was struggling the most with staying on his board while he surfed, and she wondered why.  
Coming up next to Luchia, she asked, "Mind if I join you?"  
"Noelle?" Luchia asked back as she noticed her taking a seat in the sand, "What are you doing here?"  
"I thought I'd see the guys surfing. Is that wrong?" While Luchia was left to wonder about Noelle's strange behavior, Noelle went back to watching Daichi surf.

After a little while of that, the guys finally came back to shore. As they did, they were pretty surprised to see Noelle there alongside Luchia.  
"Noelle?" Kaito inquired, "What are you doing here?"  
"I came to watch you surf." Noelle explained, "Daichi told me you would be surfing after work."  
"Well, Daichi, looks like you've got a fan." Kengu teased his friend.  
"I didn't think she would actually come." Daichi told him, "I only told her if she was interested." Noelle was hurt when he said he didn't think she would come. That the offer was just thrown out there. So she got up, and left without another word.  
"Nice one dummy." Kaito chastised, "She believed that you expected her to show up after you made that offer. You can't just say stuff like that whenever you want." Daichi then realized the goof he made, and raced after Noelle to make it up.  
"That Daichi." Kengu laughed, "Can't catch a wave, and can't catch a girl either."  
"I think they'll be alright." Luchia figured, "I have no doubt Noelle really likes Daichi."  
"Yeah." Kaito agreed, then he smirked, "Now to eat. I'm starved." And Luchia sighed as Keito went into his usual, oblivious self.

Down a ways along the beach, Noelle heard Daichi call out, "Hey! Wait up, Noelle!" Turning around, Noelle found Daichi running right up to her.  
"What is it, Daichi?" she asked.  
"I wanted to say sorry, for what I said back there." he explained, "That wasn't cool of me. Please forgive me."  
"That's alright." Noelle giggled, "I really liked watching you surf. It looked fun."  
"Glad you enjoyed it. I can't believe I'm not getting better at it." Then, he perked, "Actually, maybe you can help me out."  
"What do you mean? How can I help?"  
"Well, you're pretty smart. And you read a lot. So maybe next time, you can give me some pointers on how I can do better. Please Noelle."  
"Okay okay. I'll do what I can."  
"Great! Then let's meet back here in a couple days. You can coach me then, okay?" Noelle agreed to Daichi's terms. With a quick farewell, Daichi headed back to where the others were. And, right there, Noelle decided she would do her best to make Daichi a better surfer.

* * *

The next day found Pearl Piari to be pretty empty. Most of the girls had gone out with plans they had for the day. Even Nikora was out, apparently going to the store for supplies for Maki's restaurant. Only Karen, Noelle, Meru, and Hippo were left to look after the hotel.  
But as Karen was coming down to the lobby, she noticed that only Meru and Hippo were present.  
"Meru, have you seen Onee-san?" she asked.  
"No." Meru replied, "But I did hear that she may have gone to the bookstore." To the bookstore? This early? That wasn't like Noelle.  
"Karen-san, is something going on with Noelle-san?" Hippo inquired.  
"I think Noelle may be falling in love with someone." Karen told him.  
"Noelle-sama too?!" Meru gasped.  
"Luchia-san and the other two might have been allowed by Aqua Regina-sama." Hippo pondered worriedly, "But if Noelle-san falls in love, who knows what trouble that might bring."  
"So what are you suggesting, Hippo?" Karen questioned. And Hippo explained his idea to the two girls.

* * *

A little later found Karen, Meru, and Hippo in the city, just across from the bookstore. They were dressed in brown trench coats, hats, and sunglasses.  
"Is this really necessary Hippo?" Karen sighed, sounding slightly annoyed.  
"I like it. This way, we can spy on Noelle-sama, but not be recognized." Meru beamed silently.  
Using a pair of binoculars, Hippo told them, "I see her. Noelle-san is reading something."  
"Well, of course Hippo." Karen chastised the penguin, "She likes to read. But what is she reading?"  
"She's reading... a surfing magazine?"  
"What do you mean?" Meru inquired,  
"'The How To of Surfing.'" Hippo read, "A surfing instruction book."  
"What is Onee-san up to?"  
"She's getting up! We have to follow." So they did.

The trio tailed Noelle as she traveled throughout the city. They kept a respectful distance behind her so as not to look suspicious, though they did get some weird looks from some passersby. Whenever Noelle felt like she was being followed and looked back, the three would either hide or make themselves inconspicuous. They continued for a while as Noelle entered a surf shop.

"Thank you." Noelle said to the store owner as she left the store.  
But before she left, she heard someone call out, "Hey! You're Noelle right? Seira's friend?" Noelle turned around to find Hugo walking towards her, in street attire.  
"Oh, hello." she returned, "You must be Masani Hugo."  
"Just Hugo, please." Hugo requested politely.  
"Of course. What are you doing here?"  
"I might ask you the same thing. What's someone like you doing at a surf shop?"  
"I was... getting some advice on a present I was doing for a friend."  
Looking at her suspiciously, Hugo spoke, "Really?"  
Sighing in defeat, Noelle admitted, "No. I was asking for some teaching advice. I want to help a friend get better, so I'm learning as much as I can to help."  
"I see." Hugo chuckled, "Well, then you'll miss one lesson that everyone must remember." Another lesson? What could Hugo mean? "When you surf, it's not enough to memorize the techniques. You have to feel the surf. It has to become so natural that you don't even think about it. You have to make it a part of you." Make it a part of you? How did that work? Noelle couldn't understand what Hugo meant. "Well, see ya. Good luck with that friend of yours." Hugo waved good-bye as he entered the shop himself. Deciding she needed to compile all she found out, Noelle headed for the hotel.

* * *

Back at Pearl Piari, Noelle wrote down notes of all she had learned about surfing. She then compared those with notes of what she remembered from watching Daichi surf. Upon comparing them, she found that Daichi was doing all the techniques appropriately. So then why did he struggle? That was when Noelle hit upon the last note: "Feel the surf." What about that line made everything else come together?  
Karen came over to her to see what she was doing, figuring it was time to break Noelle away from it before she went too far.  
"Onee-san, want to go get some monjayaki?" she asked.  
"Maybe later Karen." Noelle replied, not even looking up from her notes.  
"Okay. How about looking for some new books?"  
"Not today." This was becoming rather annoying for Karen.  
"Hey, is that Yuri outside with Hippo?"  
"Could be." Noelle hadn't even broken eye contact with her note-taking, which was driving Karen up the wall.  
In a last ditch effort, Karen cried out, "Oh no! Dr. Hishki has Rina and Coco! And he's coming after us next!" Noelle didn't even stir fro what she was doing. Not even a smidgen. Annoyed, Karen shouted, "Are you even going to at least look at me?!"  
"Karen, I'm really busy figuring this out." she told her, "If you want someone to talk to, why don't you go check on Subaru?" Irritated, Karen stormed up to her room. When she left, Noelle muttered, "When will she accept her true feelings?"

* * *

A couple days later found the beach bright and serene. Seagulls flew in the radiant sky, riding the air to wherever it carried them. On the beach, Daichi sat looking at the waves, his surfboard resting beside him. Today's waves looked perfect to train, but he was worried he wouldn't get any better. He learned a lot from Kaito and the other guys, but he still felt like he wasn't getting as good as them. But today would be different. Today, he would get better.  
As he stood to go into the water, Daichi heard Noelle call out to him.  
With a smile, Daichi greeted, "You made it. Thanks so much Noelle."  
"I should be thanking you." she replied, "I'm learning so much about surfing because of you."  
"Great. So, want to get started?"

A few minutes passed as Noelle did some instructional critiquing with Daichi on the shore. She corrected him to the best of her newfound knowledge on technique and form, as well as teaching him a few signs to keep aware of. Daichi knew most of the stuff Noelle was teaching him, but there were some times when he learned something new from her. He was impressed with how knowledgeable Noelle could be. After everything had been fixed and adjusted, Daichi grabbed his board as he began to head out into the ocean.  
"Wait, Daichi!" Noelle called to him.  
Turning around with a puzzled expression, Daichi asked, "What's up?"  
"There's one more thing I forgot to tell you." she told him, "When you go out there and surf, you have to feel it. Let it become second-nature. It's not enough to simply memorize surfing. You have to feel the surf." Daichi pondered the advice, and wondered where Noelle got such an idea like that. He had never heard of doing something like that before. But he figured it had to be important, so he took it in as he headed out.

For the first little while, things were going smoothly. Daichi would get on a wave, and managed to stay on his board for a little while. He would still wipe out, however, and had to get back on his board. But he kept trying, putting all he learned together to get better. Even so, he kept getting agitated at how badly he was doing on even the easiest waves.  
After another bad wipe out, Daichi looked back to Noelle as a thought crossed his mind.  
 _Feel the surf._ he thought, _Maybe I should try it._ Getting up, he caught the next wave and began to ride. This time, he didn't think about what he was doing. He just did it, feeling out the wave as he did. Then, once he got the hang of it, Daichi tried doing some tricks. And he found that he could do it! He was surfing with ease.  
"I did it!" Daichi cheered. Noelle saw his progress, and felt proud that he was doing better than before. He really looked like a pro out there, shredding the waves like there was no tomorrow.  
But then, he suddenly grabbed his leg and cried out, "Cramp! Cramp!" Losing his balance, Daichi fell into the water. Noelle became worried, and wondered what she should do. Should she go get help? Should she risk it and go in to save him herself? She wasn't sure what to do. But, Daichi wasn't resurfacing. Deciding she should go for it, Noelle ran straight into the water. Observing from the road, Karen felt like something bad was about to happen.

* * *

Underwater, Noelle noticed that Daichi wasn't moving. As she swam up to him, she felt a rather large bump on the back of his head. He must have hit his head on something. But what? There were no rocks or anything for miles. Suddenly, Noelle felt that something was very off right now. But she couldn't worry about it right away. Daichi was her primary concern right now. So she carried him back to shore.  
Upon surfacing, Noelle set Daichi in the sand as she looked to his leg. It was still in a bent position from seizing up so suddenly. But, it was an easy fix. Noelle put one hand by his toes and pushed up. With the other hand, she eased his leg to become straight again. She applied the technique for a couple minutes, then let it go as the muscles relaxed.  
As she looked at Daichi, she felt a quickened pace in her chest. A rush of emotion and a feeling of elation.  
 _So this is what love is like._ Noelle pondered, _It feels so different. So... right._ She brought herself closer to him, looking towards his face. In her books, romance was always followed by a kiss. Should she do it? Would this even count? Deciding it was worth a try, Noelle inched her face closer to his.  
Right at the moment Noelle was hoping would happen, she heard a guy yell, "Ew! Don't make me puke!" Startled, Noelle spotted the Triple Threat, the same three boys that captured Rina, Luchia, and Hanon.  
"Puh-lease! That is so old school." the blue one, Christoph, sighed.  
"Wh-Who are you?" Noelle demanded.  
"Oh, forgive us for not introducing ourselves, Mermaid Princess." Javer replied nonchalantly.  
"We are the Triple Threat!" They said in unison.  
"The rad awesome Avery!"  
"The cool and collected Christoph!"  
"And the red-hot leader, Javer!"  
Spying from behind the sea wall, Karen whispered to herself, "So they're the Triple Threat? They certainly sound confident in themselves."  
"Now, Mermaid Princess, let's get this show started." Javer told her as the guys prepped themselves to sing.  
"It's showtime!" And they began to sing their song, "Playtime." The boys break danced as they sung, telling a tale of how love was just a toy to be played with. That it is merely enjoyment, and not much else. The song hurt Noelle, and she tried to block it out. Even Karen felt its effects where she was.  
Grimacing, she muttered, "Guess I better get those boys' help."

"That's the show!" Triple Threat announced as they finished. Noelle was hunched over, on the verge of passing out. That song, even if it wasn't sung by water demons, was infused with dark energy. And Noelle knew she wouldn't win, even if she could transform. Their power was just too much to handle.  
"Easy pickings." Christoph scoffed.  
"This'll show those three wannabes Triple Threat rules!" Avery cheered.  
"Now, to finish the job." Javer spoke. Suddenly, a mechanical claw appeared, and darted straight for Noelle. She braced for the impact, knowing that it was futile to try and escape. But, nothing happened. Looking up, she found Daichi holding his ground, pushing back against the mechanical claw.  
"I don't know... what's going on." he grunted under the strain, "But, are you okay, Ms. Mermaid?" Noelle didn't respond. She was star-struck by Daichi's struggle. He was like a knight, her knight, in shining armor. And he was protecting her.  
"Yo dude, clear out!" Avery scolded.  
With effort, Daichi shoved the claw into the sand yelling, "Not today!" Then he picked up the mermaid behind him and raced off.  
"Oh no you don't!" Javer threatened. And they gave chase, the claw following close behind.

As Triple Threat chased down the runaways, they used their claw to make attempts at either capturing Noelle, or tripping Daichi. But Daichi didn't think about how to dodge their efforts, nor did he wonder why he was helping this mermaid, he just acted on instinct. And his instincts told him to play keep away with three creepy dudes.  
Just then, the claw changed tactics and sweeped towards the ocean.  
Noticing this, Noelle cried out, "Daichi, watch out!" But Daichi's lapse in concentration from Noelle calling him by his name cost him, and he was knocked towards the ocean. Noelle groaned from the impact after hitting the sand, her tail being lapped by the waves. Daichi was only a couple feet away from her, conked out again from the impact.  
As the boys strolled up to their prey, Javer grinned menacingly and asked, "Any last words, Mermaid Princess?" And the claw shot towards Noelle.

"Leave them alone!" she heard Kaito call out as his Panterassa powers radiated, shattering the claw into a million pieces. The Triple Threat was shocked, and they were startled even more as Luchia and Kaito came upon the group.  
"Noelle, are you okay?" Luchia asked.  
"I think so. Thank you, Luchia."  
Turning sternly towards the Triple Threat, Kaito told them, "You're gonna regret attacking my friend like that. And we'll send you back to your maker."  
"Try all you want, there's only two of you." Javer smirked.  
"Only two?" Hanon came in from the roadside.  
"Better get a recount, mecha babies." Nagisa taunted.  
"Okay four. We can still beat you." Christoph retorted.  
"Make that six." Rina said as she and Masahiro arrived from behind the three mechas.  
"Now, you're done for." Masahiro pointed out. And with Triple Threat shaking in fear, the three pairs began transforming.

 _ **"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"**_

Once they finished transforming into their second forms, they grouped together as their melody began to play.  
"How did this happen?" Avery exclaimed.  
"Brace for impact, guys." Christoph suggested.  
"Pichi Pichi Duet, Live Start!"

The group then sung their song, "Bridges." Singing of connecting, and standing firm in these connections. That even if the storms raged, or the earth quaked, their bonds would stand strong. The Triple Threat wailed out in agony at how they were being bested by three mermaids, along with three humans. It was incomprehensible to them.  
When finished, the gang announced, "Love Shower Pitch! How about an encore?"  
"Forget it! We're gone for now." Javer snarled. And the trio of mechas teleported. Despite the victory, the six friends were startled by Noelle and Daichi's absence.  
"Where's Noelle and Daichi?" Luchia pointed out.  
"You don't think Dr. Hishki got her, do you?" Hanon panicked.  
"Calm down! Look at the sand." Kaito firmly directed. The others noticed that there was a small pair of trenches in the sand, leading into the ocean. And they were exactly where Noelle and Daichi just were.  
"I get it now." Masahiro perked up, "Noelle must have taken Daichi somewhere while we were singing."  
"But where?" Rina pondered.  
With a giggle, Hanon stated, "It's quite obvious what's going on. Especially for us." The boys didn't follow, but Luchia and Rina understood what she meant.

* * *

Down a ways along the beach found Noelle and Daichi resting close to the water. Daichi was still conked out from the mechanical claw's mean swipe, and Noelle was trying to wake him up.  
"Daichi. Daichi!" she urged, "Please wake up. Daichi!" Eventually, her words finally got through to him as Daichi began to groggily wake up.  
When he saw the indigo mermaid sitting next to him, he bolted straight up and exclaimed, "Is this real?! Am I dreaming?!" He tried pinching himself to snap out of whatever illusion he thought he had, but he still found Noelle next to him. "Aw man! Not good!" he wailed.  
Setting her hand gingerly on his shoulder, Noelle assured, "It's alright. You don't have to be afraid."  
"Are you... is this real?" Daichi asked her.  
"It's all real. You have no reason to be afraid."  
"That's a relief." Daichi sighed exasperatedly, "Part of me was hoping this was actually real. I guess, since this is real, that you saved me from whoever those guys were."  
Becoming misty-eyed, Noelle replied, "You saved me, Daichi. If you hadn't protected me from those boys, I would have been in trouble. Thank you." Then, a strange feeling overcame the two of them right then and there. A rushing feeling, followed by a feeling of unity with each other. It was hard to explain for either of them.  
 _Is this what Rina has experienced? Is this... what to love someone feels like?_ Noelle thought. Then, Noelle hugged Daichi into her, resting her head on his. Confused, but relieved, Daichi let his head rest against her as she embraced him with tears streaming down her eyes.

Watching from the sea were Hippo, Meru, and Karen. Meru was cheering quietly in the fact of another human and mermaid pairing, while Hippo was wigging out over it. But Karen had a hard time placing her feelings on the matter. Part of her was happy for Noelle finding someone, and another part felt disheartened by that very same idea. Then, another side to her envisioned that scene was of her and Subaru on that beach.  
Holding a fist over her heart, Karen wondered aloud, "Was I wrong? Is it possible for a mermaid and a human to be able to love one another?" Closing her eyes, she prayed, "Aqua Regina-sama, what is right? Should I seal away these feelings for Subaru, or embrace them like Onee-san has?" And that was the prevailing question as the sun set on a knight and a princess.

* * *

Luchia: Seira! Where are you?!  
Kaito: Luchia, don't give up hope.  
Luchia: But Seira, she's...  
Kaito: We will find her. I promise.  
Luchia: I hope so, Kaito.

 **Next time, on Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo,  
Wandering Orange**

Kaito: We'll find Seira, no matter what.


	16. Wandering Orange

**And here we go with another chapter of Mermaid Melody: Pichi Pichi Duo. Bet you're wondering what Luchia and Kaito were discussing about Seira in the preview from the last chapter. Well, wonder no more, cause we are gonna see why. Fans who like things being all sunshines and rainbows might want to skip through this fast. Cause the ending ain't pleasant.**

 **Don't worry, it's nothing serious. Just emotional. Beyond that, have fun.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Mermaid Melody, its characters, etc. All rights to their appropriate owners.**

* * *

Chapter 16:  
Wandering Orange

Hugo's limo drove along the coast as the teen was returning to the manse from meeting his father. The man wanted to discuss matters with Hugo now that he was on summer break. Matters that involved his behavior outside of school. Hugo managed to ace most, if not all, of his exams and classes, ranking highest in the whole school. So this summer, his father was going to have him take part in helping the family business. And he would make sure that Hugo wouldn't be distracted by anything trivial.  
Hugo hated the idea of doing things for his father. He wanted to break away from what his parents wanted, and wanted to just be a normal teenager. It didn't help that his mother agreed with his father, and wanted to see to it personally that Hugo did only what his father wanted of him. It infuriated him.  
Growling, Hugo ordered the driver, "Stop the car! Now!" The driver obeyed, and allowed Hugo to step outside to breath in some fresh air. The sound of the crashing waves, combined with the salty sea air, put his mind more at ease than before. This was where he was calmest, near the ocean. That's why he surfed whenever he could, to escape into the sea. It was the one place he truly felt at home.  
As he pondered over it, his thoughts crossed into those of the Orange Mermaid he had encountered. Twice before he had met her, but both times were brief and fleeting. He wanted to find her, to know her, to understand the feelings he had toward her. But even as he thought of it, he couldn't help thinking about Seira. And again, the two images were always trying to merge together.

Before he decided to keep going home, he noticed a figure lying sprawled out on the beach. Someone with long, orange hair. Thinking it was Seira, Hugo raced over to her. As he approached, he realized this maiden had an orange tail rather than legs. That revelation stopped Hugo dead in his tracks. It was the orange mermaid, the same one he met before! Hugo turned her onto her back, and began checking her pulse to see if she was alright. She had a pulse, and it was steady, but she looked completely unconscious. Deciding that he should help her, Hugo ran back to the limo, and grabbed a towel from the trunk. He returned and soaked the towel in the water. And then, he wrapped the mermaid in the damp towel so he could hide her identity, and carried her back to the limousine. He instructed his driver to get them home as quickly as possible, instructing him to keep the girl a secret from his parents. And with all haste, they worked their way back to the manse.

* * *

In the meantime, on a beach close to Pearl Piari, Luchia and her friends were out looking for Seira.  
"Seira! Where are you?!" Luchia cried out.  
"Seira! Hey Seira!" Nagisa called out.  
"Seira-san!" Hippo shouted.  
Surfacing close by with Momo, Hanon reported, "Luchia, we've scoured the whole Pacific Ocean. We can't find her." Momo chirped a similar report to Luchia as well.  
"I see." she responded, crestfallen by the news, "Momo-chan, spread the word to keep looking for Seira." Momo clicked in affirmation, then dove back under.  
On another beach further down, Kaito, Karen, Rihito and some of Kaito's friends were also out searching for Seira. But they were having just as much luck as the first group. Everyone kept coming up empty in locating the young Mermaid Princess.  
 _Blast that cursed fail-safe!_ Kaito seethed.

 _Earlier that day, Luchia, Kaito, and the others had been attacked by the Triple Threat. The three duos had transformed, and were about to sing until the opposing force used a containment field to imprison them. Undeterred, they sung their song anyway. What they failed to realize was that, as their powers started to weaken the cage, that a fail-safe had been initiated to take them all out. Seira used herself to shield her friends, right when Kaito's Panterassa powers had activated. The resulting explosion sent the Triple Threat flying, but Seira also disappeared in the aftermath._

Everyone knew she was still alive. The problem came when they had to find where she had been blasted off to. They needed to find her, and Kaito knew that. But where could they look? Kaito grew more frustrated by the minute on this question.

* * *

Back with Hugo, the limo finally pulled up to the Masani mansion. Once they arrived, Hugo carried the orange mermaid to the East Wing with haste. He hurried into a colossal chamber occupied by a ginormous pool. He locked the door behind him, to make sure no one came in to find his mermaid unexpectedly. Removing her from the damp towel, Hugo set her in a wading section of the pool, right on the edge to a very deep deep end. He removed his tux until he was in his hidden board shorts and orange shirt. Then, he checked the mermaid to make sure she was alright. He tried listening for if there was water in her lungs, but heard nothing. Then, he gave a couple quick compressions to jump start her breathing. But she didn't stir.  
Facing little alternative, Hugo made a move to give mouth-to-mouth. But then, he stopped short, his face hovering inches over the mermaid's. He felt her breathing, taking slow breaths that were nearly impossible to notice unless he felt the air coming from her. That was when Hugo knew this mermaid would be alright.  
That's when he noticed the pendant she wore. It looked similar to the one Seira always wore. How was that possible? What did this mermaid have in common with Seira? It couldn't have been a mere coincidence that both this mermaid and her had the same pendant. The odds were astronomical. Weren't they?  
As Hugo sat up, the orange mermaid began waking up.  
As her eyes drew open, Hugo sighed, "That's a relief. You're gonna be alright." Then, the mermaid's eyes fell on the boy, but not with the same sense of longing they normally had. On the contrary, she looked lost and confused.  
"Who... are you?" she asked him.  
Puzzled by the question, Hugo asked, "Don't you remember? We met before a couple of times. I'm Hugo."  
"Hugo?"  
"What's your name?"  
Looking forlorn, the mermaid answered, "I don't... remember. I don't remember anything." This revelation startled Hugo. Could this have been... amnesia?!

* * *

Returning to Pearl Piari, the six Mermaid Princesses returned to their respective rooms. The three Sea Princes followed behind them, sitting in the dining area. Today's search had definitely not gone well for any of them. Their search for Seira was turning up as empty as a sieve, which made the fear that she had been captured more dominant in their minds.  
"Where else can we search?" Nagisa asked in an irritated tone.  
Taking out several maps, Masahiro answered, "Besides the treasure cave, not much else. We must have looked everywhere by now."  
"Not everywhere." Kaito argued, "There is the coast out in the cliff area. We can still look there."  
"Well then let's go!" Nagisa urged excitedly.  
"It's getting late." Masahiro pointed out, "Besides, this search is draining Luchia and the others."  
"Oh yeah."  
"Kaito," Masahiro spoke to his friend, "You should check up on Luchia. Rina told me how distressed she looked while we were out searching."  
"I will." Kaito sighed. So he made his way to Luchia's room.

Up in her room, Luchia sat on her bed, staring at a picture of all seven Mermaid Princesses, before the whole incident even began. Her focus was primarily on Seira, and she began to recall all the times she spent with her. All the fun they had, all the places they went, the times they spent with everyone else. But rather than cheer her up, the recollections just made Luchia even more depressed. She kept battling with the doubt she felt about herself and her ability to protect Seira.  
As Kaito came in, he noticed how much Seira's absence was affecting her. Tears were pouring out onto her picture frame she held. He knew this wasn't the first time Luchia had lost Seira, but that didn't mean it didn't mean it did not bother her any less than before. Right now, she needed all the support he and the others could provide.  
Gently setting himself next to her, Kaito wiped a few tears from her eyes. Luchia took notice, and turned towards him. Kaito then pulled her into a hug, and she buried her face in his chest.  
"It'll be alright." Kaito whispered in assurance, "We will find her."  
"But Kaito-" Luchia cried softly.  
"No 'buts'. We will find her. I can feel it."

* * *

Later that evening, at the Masani manse, the orange mermaid Hugo rescued was resting at the very bottom of the pool. She still was unsure about what was going on around her, and who she was. She wasn't sure who that boy, Hugo, was, but she felt in her heart that he was a friend. No, more than that. There was a certain feeling she had about him that went deeper than friendship. But, what was it? And why did she feel apprehensive around him too? She had to know.  
In her pondering, she noticed Hugo's figure appearing on the edge of the pool. He must have returned from his business earlier. Hastily, she burst through the surface, splashing Hugo a tad with her appearance.  
As he approached the rim, she inquired, "Are you alright, Hugo-san?"  
"Just Hugo... please." Hugo responded, pondering his response a little, "I... learned my parents won't be home for a couple days. So you'll be able to hide here until you get your memory back."  
"Thank you. I do hope I can remember who I am soon."  
"Take your time. Don't rush the memories back. And I'll be here to keep an eye on you."  
"You will?!"  
Showing her a sleeping area set up behind him, Hugo explained, "Yeah. I want to be here with you when you remember. And, to keep you secret from everyone else."  
"Thank you, Hugo-san. I believe I am in good hands with you watching over me."  
"Just... Hugo."

That night, as Hugo slept near the pool, he had a peculiar dream. He was underwater, surrounded by coral cliffs and ruined pillars. Hugo had never felt so unsure about where he was before. It was like this place existed, yet it didn't. He began to swim around to investigate, and noticed a bright glow of orange light coming from what looked like an altar. Curious, Hugo ventured over to the light as it began to take the shape of a figure, with long orange hair.  
"Seira!" he cried out. But then he discovered that it wasn't Seira. The figure looked older, and wore a long, white dress. Even if this wasn't Seira, Hugo thought her presence felt similar to hers.  
"Hugo, you must protect Seira." the figure spoke to him.  
"Protect her?" Hugo asked.  
"A wicked man seeks her for his malefic ambitions. It could threaten the very balance of the sea." she elaborated, "Seira will need you to face this challenge."  
"What do you mean?!"  
"Protect her."

Immediately, Hugo woke with a start. What he had seen in his dream unnerved him. Who was that woman? Why did she want him to protect Seira? Question after question piled up in his head, to the point where it felt like his head would explode with questions. In distress, Hugo glanced over to the other side of the pool where the orange mermaid rested on the shallow ramp. There was something about that mermaid that made Hugo feel... strange. But more than that, Hugo could not help but think about Seira whenever he thought about this mermaid, and vice versa. But, it was a good feeling Hugo felt. And he believed this mermaid was a good person.  
He got up, and began making his way over to the other side When he arrived, Hugo tenderly moved her a little out of the water, but kept the bottom-most part of her tail somewhat submerged. Thankfully, the action did not stir her. Hugo wasn't sure why he was doing this, but something about what he had been told gave him the feeling that he should keep her close to him. Setting himself next to her, Hugo gazed at the mysterious beauty that lay before him.  
"There's something more about you that I just can't seem to pin down." he whispered, "This rush inside of me, why does it occur whenever I meet you?" The sleeping mermaid didn't respond. but Hugo wasn't looking for one. With his feet nearly touching the water, Hugo pulled the mermaid into him, caressing her head against his chest. "I may not understand it all," he told her softly, "But I know I will protect you. I will make sure nothing ever happens to you. Count on it."

The next morning, the orange mermaid's eyes creaked open as the rising sun shone into the pool room. As she awoke, she noticed that she was scrunched up against someone. She realized that it was Hugo who was holding her, his arms wrapped around her in a form of comfort. This realization made the orange mermaid begin to think.  
 _This boy,_ she pondered, _It feels like there's something about him that attracts me. Are these feelings somehow connected to him?_ In that moment, two memories flashed before her eyes. Both these memories depicted her meeting Hugo, a sense of longing ever-present in each scene, and then disappearing beneath the waves.  
 _This must be it._ she figured, _My feelings for him must be strong. So that means I... love him. Yes, I must be in love with him._ Sighing in content, Seira nuzzled against Hugo's chest. She may not be remembering a lot, but she certainly remembered one memory. A memory she would hold close to her heart.

* * *

Later in the morning, Luchia, Hanon, Rina, and their boyfriends were walking along the coast, keeping an eye out for Seira. Luchia did her best to hide it, but everyone knew she was still quite distraught about the disappearance. It had already been two days since Seira vanished, and the fear that Dr. Hishki had managed to capture her was dominant among them all.  
Accompanying them, Hippo used his Pearl Radar to scan for Seira's presence. For a time, only the group's six pearls blipped on the screen. Hippo still disliked that the pairs were almost always together, and even more so that Aqua Regina seemed to allow it by granting the boys her power as well. But he kept that to himself as he kept aware for Seira's signal.  
"So, how is that little radar-thingie supposed to help us?" Nagisa inquired for the third time.  
"It picks up the energy given off by the pearls the mermaid princesses carry." Hippo replied with an annoyed grunt, "When we get close, Seira-san's pearl should show up."  
"That radar seems to be picking up our pearls too." Masahiro pointed out, "Could that mean we could find other Sea Princes with it while we search?"  
"No! And don't remind me. I still do not believe the Mermaid Princesses should remain in love with you humans."  
"Hippo." Hanon and Rina growled threateningly.  
"I mean, it could be something we can look into in the future."  
"Yeah." Hanon agreed chipperly, "If you boys could become Sea Princes, then maybe there are others who can be too."  
"Hey! Keep focused on finding Seira back there." Kaito barked. And that halted the present conversation. Just then, a lone seagull landed on the sea wall and began chirping to Luchia.  
"What is it?" she asked. Hopping onto the sea wall, Hippo also partook in the exchange. As it chirped away, Luchia's face turned from hopeful to astonished.  
"Thank you." Hippo told the seagull, then he turned to the others and relayed, "Seira-san was seen not too far from here yesterday. However, a human boy with blond hair took her with him in a limousine."  
"Blond hair?" Rina pondered.  
"And a limo?" Nagisa added.  
"It's Hugo! Hugo must have found Seira, and took her with him!" Luchia figured out.  
"Which would mean Seira might possibly be with him at his mansion further ahead." Masahiro concluded.  
"Right. Then let's go find her!" Kaito urged. In agreement, the group ran off for the Masani manse.

As Luchia and her friends drew near, they spotted a horrifying sight on the road in front of the mansion. Standing there was Dr. Hishki's robot! And beside it was the Triple Threat, talking to a butler at the gate.  
"Dr. Hishki!" Rina gritted.  
"Is he in league with Hugo?" Nagisa grunted, "I can't believe Seira would let herself get captured so easily."  
"Let's get over there and stop them, before he gets Seira." Kaito told them.  
"Hang on Seira, we're coming." Luchia whispered to herself. And with it, the group transformed.

 _ **"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"**_

Once in their second forms, the group spotted Javer toss aside the butler like a rag doll. That made many things clear, and further urged them to stop Dr. Hishki in his tracks.  
"Stop right there, Dr. Hishki!" Luchia shouted. The villains turned to face the duos, smirking in confidence at the change in circumstances.  
"Well well, what have we got here?" Dr. Hishki bellowed in delight, "Four mermaid princesses at one time? How wonderfully coincidental."  
"And we get to beat their boyfriends too." Avery guffawed.  
As their tune began to play, Kaito remarked, "You seem to forget how strong we have become now that we are Sea Princes."  
"So it looks like you'll be the ones being beaten." Masahiro added.  
"You've underestimated us too many times." Hanon spoke.  
"Now your overconfidence will become your downfall." Rina inputted.  
"We will protect the peace of the seas from those that wish to harm it." Luchia finished, "And that includes you!"  
"Pichi Pichi Duet, Live Start!"

* * *

"I see." Hugo spoke to a staff member just outside the pool room, "Call the authorities and lock down the manse. We can't let anyone in to do harm." The staff member acknowledged the instructions, and rushed off to enact them. Meanwhile, Hugo returned to the pool room. Whatever was happening, he had to make sure his mermaid was safe. But the thought of a giant robot outside terrified him. What was going on around here?  
"Hugo, what's happening?" the orange mermaid asked concerningly.  
"There are some people outside trying to break in." he told her, "But we'll make sure to keep this place, and you, safe."  
Turning somber, she asked, "Is it because of me that this is all happening to you?"  
"No, don't ever think that. No one could have known you would be here. I'm guessing it's just robbers or something." But, Hugo wasn't so convinced in his assurance himself. Whoever was trying to break in must have been after his mermaid. But he was sure he kept her hidden when he found her. So then why were they under threat of attack?  
"Well, aren't we the brave type." came a woman's voice. And appearing near the ocean-viewing windows were three strange women, one of which Hugo recognized from last time.  
Taking a defensive stance between them and his orange mermaid, Hugo demanded, "Who are you?!"  
"Nothing you need to worry about boy." Arara sighed, "Now why don't you give us that mermaid princess and we'll be on our way."  
"Not a chance!" Hugo refuted. Arara was quite stunned to find that Hugo wasn't fawning over her like most boys were supposed to. He should have been happy to oblige to her command.  
"Stand aside boy, and we won't hurt you." Lady Bat warned.  
"Forget it! You think I'm gonna let you do whatever you want?! This is my house, and you're trespassing!"  
"So be it, boy." Linhua spoke. Immediately, the three water demons shoved Hugo back and into the pool.  
"Hugo!" the mermaid cried out. She quickly dove after him and helped him upright.  
"Now then, Mermaid Princess." Lady Bat spoke as they came into the water, "You're coming with us."  
Setting himself upright, Hugo growled, "Not on your life."

* * *

"Love Shower Pitch!" The effect of the three duo's song had left Dr. Hishki's robot inoperable, as well as halting the Triple Threat from trying anything funny.  
"I really hate them." Christoph grumbled aloud.  
"That's pretty pathetic that you boys have to rely on your silly girlfriends to beat us." Avery taunted.  
"You're one to talk, since we just beat you without breaking a sweat." Nagisa smirked.  
"Did you now?" Dr. Hishki bellowed, "I may not have gotten the Mermaid Princesses standing before me, but my other agents have already confronted the Orange Pearl Mermaid Princess. I'd wager they have her in custody by now."  
"In other words, you lost." Javer chuckled maleficly. And with that, the robot group disappeared.  
"What did he mean by 'other agents'?" Hanon pondeed.  
Realizing what he meant, Masahiro stated in a shocked manner, "The water demons!"  
"Dr. Hishki must have just been distracting us to buy them time!" Kaito put together.  
"Seira!" Luchia cried out. And the group made haste for the manse, with Hippo lagging behind.  
"Wait for me, Luchia-san!" he called out.

* * *

Inside, Hugo and Seira were doing their best to withstand the three water demon's dark songs. However, the combined might of the songs was hard to resist. And even underwater, Hugo was quickly losing air. If this onslaught did not end soon, he might pass out. But, he had to endure. He couldn't let these three hags get their hands on this orange mermaid. He had to defend her.  
Stopping in the midst of their songs, the water demons took notice to how long Hugo had been withstanding them. They were pretty astonished that he was still standing (so to speak), and marveled at how he could last so long.  
"Still wanting to fight boy?" Lady Bat teased.  
Panting, Hugo replied, "Yes. I will keep fighting creeps like you. And you want to know why?"  
"Oh boy." Arara sighed drearily, "Another lame defending speech."  
"Because I promised someone that I would protect her." Hugo finished, "Someone, like Seira, asked me to protect her. And I never break a promise." When Hugo mentioned the name Seira, the mermaid behind him began to remember again. She recalled herself, living among humans, going to school with friends, and being with... Hugo. Seira. Was that her name?  
"Well, we've grown bored." Lady Bat scoffed, "Time to put you in your place, little boy." The three water demons resumed their singing, but this time focused the energy on Hugo. This made Hugo claw into his head, wailing out in anguish from the three dark songs. The sight of him in turmoil began to tear at Seira. She couldn't bear to see Hugo like this. It had to stop.  
In emotional pain, Seira cried out, "HUGO!" Then, without warning, the pearl in her pendant began to glow extra bright. The light halted the water demons, forcing them to shield themselves from it. An orb of light surrounded Seira and Hugo, and then a glowing figure appeared before the boy.

Recovering from the dark songs, Hugo gazed at the majestic figure before him. He recognized her as the maiden from his dream.  
"It's... you." he gasped.  
The figure nodded, and told Hugo, "Your heart has proven true, and your love for Seira shines bright. You have passed."  
"What are you saying?"  
"Look into your heart. Make the connection." But Hugo didn't know what she meant. What connection was she talking about? And how did this relate to Seira? But then, like pieces to a puzzle, things began to sink in. This mermaid had a link to Seira, he felt it. He went through all the times they had met, and saw several similarities. Then, he imagined Seira's image merging with this mermaid's image, and they matched exactly. Hugo's mind began to race, but he began to see what he had been missing.  
"This mermaid... is Seira!" he exclaimed.  
"Correct, Hugo. Seira is the Mermaid Princess of the Indian Ocean, and my successor. But even with all her power, Seira is in grave danger because she is young. She needs someone to be her guardian. And you have proven yourself to take up that role."  
"Great. But, where is she?" Even though Hugo was in this orb of light, Seira was nowhere to be found.  
"She is here. And you will need to help her escape your predicament. Which is why I surrender my power to you." Then, a tiny orange light floated from the figure into Hugo's hand. As the light dimmed, he saw it was an orange pearl. "Good luck, Hugo Masani. Protect Seira."  
"Wait!" Hugo called back.

 ** _"Orange Pearl Voice!"_**

Behind him, Seira changed into her Pichi Pichi form. As she did, Hugo's clothes began to change too. He wore a bright orange vest over a white dress-shirt, with an orange bow tie and orange slacks. A microphone with an orange pearl in it rested in his hand. When his transformation was complete, Seira came up to him from behind.  
Taking notice, Hugo turned to her and spoke, "It's you. Seira."  
Seira nodded, then replied, "I remember everything now. Thank you, Hugo."  
"How could I have been so blind, to not notice who you were. You had always been right next to me, and I never bothered to notice."  
"It's not your fault. I had to keep myself secret. But every time we met, it hurt me to keep this side hidden from you."  
"Then, Seira, can you do one thing for me?"  
"Yes. What is it?"  
"Stay close to me, and help me with these hags who are after you."  
With a determined expression, Seira answered, "I will."  
As the Live Stage revealed the duo inside, the water demons began to hear a melody play out around them. This melody sounded much like Sara's dark song; dark, fast-paced, energetic. But the energy from it was quite the opposite, and drilled into the water demon's before any singing even happened.  
"What is this?!" Arara exclaimed.  
"It feels like a dark song, so why does it hurt us?!" Lady Bat screamed. Then, Seira and Hugo began singing a duet, "Prevailing Harmony". The song began with the statements of how love was small, insignificant, and frail. Eventually, it began to evolve into something that could not be opposed. The pair sung of how many mistake it to hurt and destroy, that love was an excuse for the weak. But as the song picked up the pace, they sung of its might, how it could calm fierce storms or quell raging seas. The power of this song was more than the water demons could handle, so they fled in shame. After they did, Hugo collapsed, and Seira had to catch him as he fell.  
"Hugo!" she gasped. Then, Sara appeared before the young Mermaid Princess. "Sara-san, what happened?! Is Hugo-?"  
"Hugo will be fine, Seira. But, he is not ready to know the truth."  
"What do you mean?"  
"Hugo cannot know who you truly are yet." Sara explained, "He must develop his feelings before he can know the truth."  
"That's not fair! Sara-san, please!" He must be able to know."  
"Hugo will know your secret in time. But until then, he must decide whether he will love you, or not."  
"But why?!"  
"The song you sung was born out of imperfect feelings. Hugo only had full affection for you mermaid self. His affections for your human self are still developing. Until he can learn to love both sides of you, he can't know about the true you." Seira didn't like that kind of ruling. She had been so ecstatic to have Hugo know who she truly was, that to have him lose that knowledge felt cruel. Still,, Seira saw Sara's point. If Hugo only loved her mermaid self, it would tear the two of them apart.  
With reluctance, Seira told Sara, "I understand."  
"Very good Seira. Luchia is teaching you well."

* * *

"Hugo. Hugo!" came a distant voice as Hugo regained consciousness. As he opened his eyes, Hugo spotted Seira watching over him, her expression changing from worry to relief.  
"You're awake! Thank goodness." she sighed. As Hugo got up, he noticed he had more guests residing in his home. Gathered around him were Kaito, Luchia, Nagisa, Hanon, Masahiro, and Rina, along with what looked like a penguin in sailor's clothes.  
"What happened? What are you all doing here?" he asked these strangers.  
"You tell us." Kaito responded, "We don't really understand what happened either."  
"Hugo, what do you remember?" Seira asked.  
"Well, I remember seeing my father, then going home shortly after. Beyond that, it's all a big blank."  
"I see." Masahiro pondered, "Well, we found you unconscious along the beach and brought you here for medical attention."  
"Wait, we did?!" Nagisa asked.  
"Yes, we did." Hanon huffed, elbowing Nagisa for some reason.  
"You were pretty out of it when we found you." Rina finished, "So you probably didn't remember anything else happening."  
"I... guess so." With their visit complete, the group of friends bid farewell and escorted Seira out with them.

* * *

As the group ventured back to Pearl Piari, Seira could not help the pit that had developed in her stomach. At long last, Hugo had figured out the truth about her, only to lose that knowledge in the same instant. Even though she now knew that Hugo needed to love both sides of her, it felt wrong for Hugo to have forgotten what he had discovered.  
Noticing Seira lagging behind, Luchia paused a moment and inquired, "What is it Seira?" Seira could no longer hide her pain, as tears began to form in her eyes. In anguish, Seira flung herself into Luchia, letting the tears fall like waterfalls.  
"I've wanted him to know for so long!" she cried, "But when he found out about me, he had to forget!"  
"Seira."  
"Luchia, why can't he know now?! When will he know the truth about me for good?!"  
Hugging Seira close, Luchia replied, "I've wondered the exact same thing when Kaito first met me. Sometimes, it hurt to keep my mermaid self secret from him. But, I realize it was for the best. And it will be for you and Hugo."  
"But... when?"  
"I do not know. But I hope soon. And I hope you never face this pain ever again."

* * *

As Hugo worked at a desk in his room, he pondered over the events that had happened. He had lied to Seira's friends about what he remembered. Beyond the ride home, Hugo remembered rescuing and caring for the orange mermaid. He had a hunch that, when he conked out, she had regained her memory. But more than that, he remembered the dream he had the other night, about needing to protect Seira. What was she in danger of? From who? In his mind's wanderings, Hugo felt something in his pocket. When he pulled it out, he found an orange pearl. What in the world happened to him, and where did he get this pearl?

* * *

 **Hanon: Tarou-chan! You're back!  
Nagisa: Tarou-chan? You mean Mitsuki-sensei is back from Germany?  
Hanon: This is so amazing! He's finally come home!  
Nagisa: Hanon, you seem a little over excited for Mitsuki-sensei.**

Next time on Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo,  
Aqua Strings of Grief

 **Nagisa: Where does that... leave me?**


	17. Aqua Strings of Grief

**Well well, looks like this story, Guardian of the Sea, and Megaman Zero Recurrence have all reached over 2000 views! That's quite a feat, isn't it? Just thought I'd mention that.**

 **Anyways, we get to an interesting chapter in the Pichi Pichi Duo series. This one focuses primarily on Nagisa and Hanon, and on some affirmations between the two. What do I mean by that? Well, it wouldn't be fair to spoil that little bit, so I'm gonna let you guys read on and find out.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Mermaid Melody or its characters. All rights to appropriate owners.**

* * *

Chapter 17:  
Aqua Strings of Grief

It was the day long looked forward, a day that many christened as THE day to be in one's life. A day of celebration, festivities, and joy. This was the time of union, one that no one could deny. It was THE wedding day!  
But it was not any ordinary wedding. This wedding was taking place in the newly-restored South Atlantic palace. The gala hosted hundreds of mermaids from across the seas, and even a few humans were in the mix too. When the ceremony began, the six Mermaid Princesses, accompanied by their Sea Princes, went down the aisle of the main chamber, all pampered and looking their best. Then, the organ began to play the Wedding March, and all rose as the bride herself began coasting down the aisle.  
Hanon was adorned in an aqua-blue mermaid dress, with detached sleeves on her forearms, and her hair studded with sparkling flowers that were covered by a veil. At the altar stood her Sea Prince, dressed in a royal-blue tuxedo with matching tie. Nagisa shifted uncomfortably, yet somewhat eagerly, as his bride approached. When she arrived, he took her by the arm and escorted her to the top of the altar, where Hippo stood in his human form, dressed in what would be a Greek priest's cloak.  
"Dear friends," he announced, "We gather today as witnesses to the union of the Prince and Princess of the South Atlantic kingdom. We bear witness to the sea goddess, Aqua Regina, of the union of mermaid and human." Then he went off into a lecture about the history of the Mermaid Princesses, the coming of the Sea Princes, etc. But, no one really paid it any attention. "Nagisa," Hippo finally directed, "Do you take Hanon to be your wife, so long as you both shall live?"  
Staring into his princess's eyes, Nagisa replied, "I do."  
"Hanon-san, do you take Nagisa to be your husband, so long as you both shall live?"  
"I do." Hanon eagerly answered. After that, Hanon and Nagisa exchanged rings.  
"Then, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride." Once Hippo finished, Hanon and Nagisa engaged in a passionate kiss as everyone cheered at their union.

* * *

"Nagisa? Nagisa!" came the teacher as a ruler slapped down in front of him, snapping him out of his daydream. Some of his classmates giggled at the scene he was a part of, including Meru. "So glad you could return to us, Nagisa-san." the teacher remarked, "Now, can you recite the equation to change temperature from Celsius to Kelvin?" Racking his brain vigorously, Nagisa frantically tried to recall the equation his teacher talked about.  
Upon remembrance, Nagisa recited, "The conversion is K=C+273.15." The class was quite astonished he remembered, despite his staring off into space earlier.  
Then, the teacher responded, "Well done. I am impressed. Keep this up, and you may be out of summer school by Thursday." As the teacher resumed, Nagisa breathed a collective sigh of relief at his dodging a bullet. That was too close.

After class, Nagisa and Meru returned to Pearl Piari. However, Meru continued to pester Nagisa about his spacing out in class today.  
"Meru, I'm not gonna tell you." he told her with a huff.  
"Aw come on! Summer school is as boring as regular school." Meru griped, "You spacing out has been the only fun thing all day. So please tell me. Please please please."  
"Tell her what?" Hanon inquired as she came down.  
Becoming super excited, Meru explained, "Hanon-sama, Nagisa was daydreaming in class today. But he isn't telling me what he dreamt about."  
"It's none of your business Meru." Nagisa shouted, getting all flustered.  
With a heavy sigh, Hanon spoke, "It was bad enough that you ended up in summer school, but I don't want you stuck in there the whole summer."  
"I'm almost out anyway."  
"Will you at least tell Hanon-sama your daydream?"  
"No way!" Nagisa immediately shot back, "Besides, I need to study for the exam Thursday."  
"Fine. I'll go swim with Rina-sama and Karen-sama then." Meru huffed.  
"Oh no, you don't." Hanon stopped as she grabbed Meru's collar, "You need to study too." Meru whined, but she obeyed anyway as she set her stuff next to Nagisa's.  
"Hey Nagisa, I've got some big news for you." Hanon informed him eagerly. Suddenly, her words brought back what Nagisa dreamt of during class.  
But, he shook it off, and asked, "What is it?"  
"This." Hanon set down an envelope in front of him, which came from Germany. Opening the letter, Nagisa read aloud,

 _Hanon-san,  
It has been some time since I last heard from you. I was very pleased to have received your last letter. I wanted to let you know that I am returning to Japan for a brief visit. I cannot wait to see how you have been since I left._

-Tarou Mistuki-

"Eh?! Mitsuki-sensei is returning?!" he exclaimed.  
"Yeah! Isn't that great?" Nagisa didn't believe so. He remembered how much of a crush Hanon had for Tarou Mitsuki, and it took her quite a long time to get her to like him. But now, with him coming back, was that still possible for them to be a couple? He was a Sea Prince, but was he the only candidate for Hanon? Besides, Hanon was too giddy about Mitsuki returning. Even more to add to the idea that he may not be the one for Hanon anymore. He loved her, but did she still love him? Nagisa wasn't too confident anymore. And now, he couldn't think straight. Packing his book bag, Nagisa walked out on the two mermaids. This action startled Hanon a bit.  
"Where's he going?" she asked.  
"Hanon-sama, did you tell him yet?" Meru inquired.  
Shaking her head, Hanon told her, "I want to surprise them both. But maybe, that was the wrong idea."

* * *

The next day, several students stood at the arrival gate of the airport. Among them were Luchia, Rina, and Hanon. Hanon held a bento that she had worked on with Luchia the previous night, but she didn't have the same excitement like she did when telling Nagisa that Mitsuki was returning from Germany. Her friends noticed this, and wondered what was wrong.  
"Hey Hanon, how come Nagisa didn't come with you?" Luchia asked her friend.  
"I don't know." she answered, "I tried calling him yesterday, but he wouldn't answer. I even tried going to his house, but i didn't find him there either."  
"He's probably upset about Mistuki-sensei returning." Rina stated. This puzzled Hanon and Luchia, and Rina was forced to explain what she said. "Hanon, you were a little over eager to have Mistuki-sensei come back. Nagisa thinks that, because of it, you are still trying to get his attention.  
"That's ridiculous!" Hanon refuted, "Nagisa is my Sea Prince after all."  
"But then who was the one who always went 'Tarou-chan' at every opportunity?" Luchia slyly snided, doing a little imitation of Hanon as well.  
"That was then. Nowadays, I am much more dignified."  
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Rina chuckled.  
But before Hanon could argue further on the matter with her friends, one of the other students called out, "Mistuki-sensei!" And coming out of the gate was the old music teacher. Mitsuki has on his usual tan jacket over a white shirt and tan pants. Everyone was eager to see him again. When she saw him, Hanon's cheeks turned cherry-red. When they did, however, Hanon recalled Nagisa's irritated expression the other day. Immediately, she just turned and ran for no apparent reason.  
"Hanon! Wait!" Luchia called as she gave chase. Rina was about to follow when Mitsuki finally approached her.  
"Rina-san, is something wrong with Hanon?"  
"With her, it could be any number of things." she told him.

"Hanon, slow down!" Luchia shouted as she raced to catch up to her friend. Eventually, Hanon stopped by a fence just outside the airfield. She couldn't understand this feeling she was experiencing, this confusion she had about Mitsuki and Nagisa. Why was she so conflicted about something like this? Nagisa was the one she truly loved. He was her Sea Prince, he saved her from Dr. Hishki, the answer should have been obvious. But again, her old feelings for Mitsuki kept coming to mind as well. So who did she really love?  
After finally catching up to her friend, Luchia panted angrily, "Hanon, what was all that about?! You shouldn't rush off like that!"  
Clenching her pendant tightly, Hanon muttered, "Luchia, what is wrong with me?"  
"Eh? Hanon?  
"Why do I feel so conflicted?"  
"Hanon, you're not making any sense." But then she began to understand what her friend was talking about. "Are you... unsure on how you feel about Nagisa?"  
Hanon looked at Luchia angrily, as if she was gonna start yelling at her, making Luchia cringe. But instead, she said, "I know how I feel about Nagisa. But, I don't know if I love him more than Tarou-chan."  
Confused, Luchia inquired, "But Hanon, didn't you decide to let go after you came to love Nagisa?"  
"I did. Or, so I thought."  
"Well, why did you want to see Mitsuki-sensei again? Wasn't it to introduce him to Nagisa?"  
"Yeah. And to show that he was my Sea Prince."  
With a big smile and a pat on the back, Luchia comforted, "Then you don't need to worry anymore. You love Nagisa, and want to show that to Mitsuki-sensei. That's all there is to it."  
"I guess."  
"Come on! Let's go introduce them to each other." Regaining her confidence, Hanon agreed.  
Right at that moment, the two spotted Mitsuki and Rina coming up to them. Hanon tensed up a bit, but she reminded herself of why she was meeting him in the first place: to show him Nagisa.  
Once they met up, Mitsuki greeted, "There you are Hanon-san. You certainly took off rather suddenly back there."  
"H-Hello, Tarou-chan." Hanon stuttered a bit.  
"If I recall, didn't you say you wanted to introduce me to a special someone? Where is he?"  
"Well, uh... um..."  
"He's probably at home, studying for his exam." Rina stepped in.  
"Oh. Maybe this would be a bad time then." he pondered.  
But Hanon took him by the hand and assured, "It'll be alright. I'm sure he won't mind. Let's go see him." With that, Hanon led her past music teacher to Nagisa's residence.  
"Hanon worries me sometimes." Luchia told Rina as they watched them leave.  
"Don't we know it." she said with a groan.

* * *

At Nagisa's house, the young boy was working at fever pitch to finish his homework for school, and to prepare for the exam coming up. He racked his brain as best as he could trying to recall all the formulas and terms required, often having to look at his notes to double-check his work. While he was working on a problem, he noticed that he had made a small error earlier in the problem, messing up the rest of the process. Frustrated, Nagisa crumpled up the paper violently, then threw it towards the trash can.  
As he sat at his desk with an irritated demeanor, he began to remember that daydream he had at school that almost got him in trouble. Nagisa didn't know whether to become angry at the thought, or go starry-eyed over it. He was still worried about when Hanon showed him Mitsuki's letter, and how eager he noticed her to be. It made him question his legitimacy of being a Sea Prince for her, and if Aqua Regina made a mistake at the time.  
Just then, the doorbell rang, snapping Nagisa out of his thoughts. He was so shocked by the sound that he accidentally fell back in his chair.  
Recovering, Nagisa answered on the intercom, "Hello. This is Nagisa."  
"Nagisa, this is Hanon!" he heard his overly cheerful girlfriend say in reply, "Hurry out here!"  
"Hanon?" he gasped. And he wasted no time heading for the front door. But when he opened it, he was surprised to find not only Hanon, but Tarou Mitsuki as well.  
"M-Mitsuki-sensei!" he stammered, mouth open in shock.  
"Hello. It's nice to finally meet you, Nagisa-san." Mitsuki returned cordially.  
With a playful giggle, Hanon latched to Nagisa and said to the teacher, "Tarou-chan, meet Nagisa, my Sea Prince." Nagisa immediately panicked when Hanon mentioned him being a Sea Prince, as he thought it was like revealing she was a Mermaid Princess.  
Pulling Hanon aside, he requested, "Excuse us for just a moment."  
Once they were a bit of distance past him, Mitsuki chuckled, "Seems Hanon hasn't changed that much. Almost like you, Sara."  
After being dragged away rather rudely, Hanon wrenched her hand out of Nagisa's and scorned, "What was that about Nagisa?!"  
"You're one to talk!" he retorted back, "I thought Mermaid Princesses weren't supposed to reveal themselves to anyone."  
"I didn't! I was just saying that you were my Sea Prince."  
"That's just the same thing! Mistuki-sensei probably doesn't even know about mermaids anyway. So why would you go and blab your secret like that?!"  
"Do you think I would be that much of an idiot to tell someone that so freely?" At that challenge, Nagisa took a moment to cool his head and ponder the idea. He considered Hanon's point, and thought back to her behavior. And he began to realize that, of all the secrets she kept, her true identity was one secret she always kept close to her. Having calmed down a bit, Hanon elaborated, "Tarou-chan knows about me being a Mermaid Princess, because he knew of another he met first. The first mermaid he ever met was Sara."  
"The Mermaid Princess before Seira?"  
"Yes. Eventually, he discovered that I was one too. So he knows. That's why I said what I said." Now Nagisa felt like a fool.  
And with it, he respectfully yearned, "Sorry, I'm so sorry. Please forgive me." Hanon thought about just letting Nagisa off the hook, as he was still getting used to her mermaid side. But then, her devious mind came up with an idea that could help with her plan.  
"I'll forgive you this time," she told him proudly, "If you spend the day with me and Tarou-chan." Even though Nagisa wanted to protest, he knew he didn't have a choice in the regard. Hanon had played her cards well, and had him trumped. So he complied, beginning to regret it.

* * *

Once that was done, the day Hanon had been hoping for began. The three of them did not do a whole lot, but that didn't matter to Hanon. She was just ecstatic to be with Mitsuki and Nagisa. but while she was enjoying the time, Nagisa continued to feel wary. He wasn't sure what it was he was feeling, but he didn't like how Hanon was acting with Mitsuki. He almost felt certain that she was doing all this just to impress her old crush again. And that began to make him think a lot of not-so-positive thoughts about himself and the Mermaid Princess.  
After having left the downtown area, Hanon sighed to the two accompanying her, "This has been amazing, Nagisa, Mitsuki-sensei."  
"It has been an experience." Mitsuki chuckled, "I am certainly glad to have done it. And to have met you, Nagisa-san."  
"Yeah. Great." Nagisa muttered.  
Noticing his grouchy behavior, Mitsuki offered, "I'll go get some ice cream. Would you two be willing to wait here?"  
"Of course!" Hanon replied enthusiastically. With that, Mitsuki sauntered over to get them some ice cream. When he left, Hanon asked chipperly, "Hasn't this been great Nagisa?"  
"Maybe to you." he replied, not even hiding indignation, "I'm not even sure what I'm doing here anymore."  
"What's the matter with you?! Sleep on the wrong side of the bed?"  
With a cold stare, Nagisa interrogated, "Who do you love more Hanon? Me, or your Tarou-chan?"  
"What kind of a question is that?! I love you. You're my Sea Prince."  
"Am I? Or was that some kind of fluke?" he continued, "This whole time I've been with you, you've been with Mitsuki-sensei's side. No only that, but you've always been calling him 'Tarou-chan' wherever we went. So what does that make me, huh?"  
"If you would just stop, I'll tell you why I am doing this!"  
"No! I won't hear it!" At that point, Nagisa tore off the pendant around his neck and threw it onto the ground. "It's time for you to choose Hanon." he told her, "Who's your real Sea Prince?" And he steamed off in a huff. Hanon tried calling him to return, but he merely continued on his way.  
Hanon felt like something inside of her had been wrenched out. Why was Nagisa treating her like this? He was her Sea Prince, someone she could truly say she loved. Picking up the pendant with the pearl, she wondered about what could make Nagisa so hostile towards her. Mistuki returned shortly after the exchange concluded, having failed to get ice cream for the three of them. When he noticed Hanon on her own, he became concerned.  
"Hanon-san, where did Nagisa-san go?" he inquired.  
Sullen, she replied, "He... took off. He wanted me to choose my Sea Prince." That cleared up a lot for him, and he knew how to resolve the matter. He told Hanon to wait for him, then walked in the direction Nagisa went. Hanon held up her pendant next to Nagisa's, and was reminded of when she was reminded of when he risked himself to save her from Dr. Hishki. That was her most cherished memory about the two of them, and these two pearls together reminded her of that. And then, when she held them closer together, the two pearls began to shine out an aquamarine light. This startled Hanon in amazement, even though she had no clue why they were doing this. But it affirmed to her what she had known at the start. Nagisa was her Sea Prince, the one she loved. There was no way she was gonna let Nagisa go now.  
But before she could race after him, she heard Christoph shout, "Nice light show, Mermaid Princess." She turned around to find the Triple Threat, looking as smug and cocky as ever.  
"Where's your boyfriend, Mermaid Princess?" Javer jeered, "Too chicken to play today?"  
"No! Just late." Hanon replied, stalling for time so she and Nagisa could take on these three together.  
"Well, now that's just rude." Avery moaned sarcastically, "A gentleman should not keep a girl waiting."  
"Well then boys, shall we?" Javer ushered.  
Together, they announced, "We are the Triple Threat!"  
"The rad awesome Avery!"  
"The cool and collected Christoph!"  
"And the red-hot leader Javer!" Hanon was unimpressed, especially with them pulling this antic again. Still, that didn't mean they were any less of a threat. With or without Nagisa, Hanon had to fight back. That was when she heard Luchia and Rina call out to her, racing up to her to aid in this confrontation. With the current matter taking precedence, the three initiated their transformations.

 ** _"Pink Pearl Voice!"_**  
 ** _"Aqua Pearl Voice!"_**  
 ** _"Green Pearl Voice!"_**

Once they were in their second forms, an energetic, electronica song began to ring out (A/N: The song is Kizuna).  
"You three certainly don't care for a maiden in distress." Luchia chastised the boys.  
"So it looks like we'll have to put you in your place." Rina added.  
With energy returned, Hanon slipped Nagisa's pendant into her glove, and barked, "We'll defeat you machines with our song of love."  
"Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!"

* * *

Some distance away, Nagisa was chucking stones into the ocean, infuriated at Hanon and how she had been acting the whole day. Partially, he blamed Tarou Mitsuki for all this. He just had to come back after Hanon finally accepted him, not only as a boyfriend, but also as her Sea Prince. He was boiling mad, like a volcano about to erupt. He chucked rock after rock, throwing all his anger into his swing. When he had launched the last rock, he collapsed to his nees and screamed at the top of his lungs. When his anger finally became exhausted, guilt began to set in. As much as he was resentful of Mitsuki for coming back into Hanon's life, he felt like it was his own fault, that Hanon would hate his guts for walking off on her like he did. At this point, could he even face her now that he did what he did?  
As he continued this thought of self-pity, Mitsuki came up beside him and sat down. Nagisa did not register his arrival, but he knew it was him.  
Taking a deep breath of the sea air, Mitsuki muttered, "Beautiful, isn't it?"  
Puzzled, Nagisa snapped out of his wallowing and asked, "What is beautiful?"  
"The sea. So deep, so mysterious, yet so marvelous all the same."  
"Oh. Yeah, it is kinda pretty."  
"Hm. Much like she was." Now Nagisa was really confused by what he meant this time. "When I met Sara, I felt so entranced. I was struggling with my music career at the time, and thought about giving it up. Yet, when I was with Sara, I wanted to pour what I felt for her into my music, to show my love for her. And, in a way, we were much like you and Hanon-san."  
With a pouty face, Nagisa responded, "Sounds like you two had it perfectly."  
Mitsuki gave a small chuckle, then continued, "When I left India, that was when Sara told me she was the Indian Ocean Mermaid Princess. I felt like I had betrayed her, just as she felt hurt that I left her. She began resenting humans because of me. Still, I hoped with all my heart that my music would reach her, and heal the hurt I caused. I almost failed then, but Hanon-san helped me to never give up."  
"Hanon... did that?" Then, Mitsuki held out an envelope to him.  
"This was Hanon-san's last letter to me." he told him, "Go ahead and read what it says." Deciding to give it a shot, Nagisa took the letter, and began to read.

 _Mitsuki-sensei,_

 _I have so much I want to tell you. And I know you should be the one to find out. There's a new force Aqua Regina-sama has called to help the Mermaid Princesses: the Sea Princes. It's so amazing! And what's more, Nagisa is my Sea Prince._  
 _I am so happy Nagisa now knows about my mermaid self. Now, I can truly love him with all my heart. I want you to meet him someday for sure. I know it might be hard after what occurred with you and Sara, but maybe it could create a new hope for you. Nagisa is an amazing person, and I can always count on him when I need him. Thank you, Tarou-chan, for helping me realize how special he is to me._

 _Love,_  
 _Hoshou Hanon_

Nagisa reread the letter three times afterwards, feeling the sincerity blare out from every word. This wasn't focused on Mitsuki, it was about him. Hanon wanted to show how close she had become to him.  
"Hanon-san wanted me to meet her cherished Sea Prince. She was so insistent on the idea that I wondered what kind of a person he was. And I see that you care for Hanon greatly."  
"But, I left her." Nagisa said somberly, "She'll never speak to me again."  
REsting a hand on his shoulder, Mitsuki assured, "If you truly care for one another, I have no doubt she'll welcome you back with open arms." Nagisa considered his words for a bit, and found him to be right. If Hanon really did love him, she would be waiting for his return. Before he could get up, however, Meru appeared from the water looking distressed.  
"Meru?!" Nagisa gasped.  
"Nagisa, Hanon-sama's in trouble."  
"What?!"

* * *

"Love Shower Pitch!" the three concluded. Sadly, their song did not faze even the hairs on the Triple Threat's heads. Their power just wasn't enough to affect them.  
"Well, now that you three wannabes are done," Javer yawned as he and the others readied their headsets, "Let's get the real party started." And their dark tune began to play out, already drilling painfully into the Mermaid Princesses.  
"It's showtime!"  
And so they sung their dark song, "Play Time". Their song about how love was a pleasure, a toy to be played with. That it was merely something to amuse them. Their song bore into the Mermaid Princesses, but even more so into Hanon. Her emotional state seemed to amplify the dark song's power, as if it resonated with something inside of her. This caused her to collapse, before the boys even got to the chorus.  
"Hanon!" Luchia and Rina cried out, still struggling against the dark song. Hanon tried fighting back, managing to get back on her knees. But the song hurt so much, she felt like she was passing out.  
Finished, the Triple Threat announced, "That's the show! We're on a roll!"  
"Too easy." Avery laughed, "Not even a challenge." However, they were surprised when Hanon, though in pain, was standing. She definitely appeared weary, and about ready to collapse, but she was also determined.  
"Looks like someone doesn't know when to quit." Javer smirked, "Better fix that Christoph."  
"Yeah baby! Time to try out Dr. Hishki's new toy." Christoph chuckled. Then, his hands became claws, and shot out at Hanon. In the moments before they got her, someone tackled her out of the way yelling, "Hanon!" Whoever yanked her out of harm's way took the impact of the fall, shielding Hanon from injury.  
When they recovered, Nagisa groaned, "Are you alright, Hanon?"  
"Nagisa!" Hanon cried out when she realized who saved her, "You came back!"  
"Of course! You-" Sadly, Nagisa's bravado was interrupted when he grimaced. His arm looked pretty scraped up, probably from when he pulled that rescue.  
"You're hurt."  
"It's just a scratch." Nagisa grimaced, "I'm just glad you're alright."  
"You dummy! That's more than a scratch. Why did you do that?"  
"Because... I love you Hanon. And I would do it again to make sure you're alright." Hanon's heart lifted greatly when he told her that. The pain she held when he left melted away, and jubilation took her over.  
Remembering, she brought out Nagisa's pendant, and giggled, "You dropped this."  
Taking it back delicately, he promised, "I'll never lose it ever again."  
Oh brother." Javer interrupted, "Someone cue the strings."  
"Mind toning down the sass a peg or two?" Kaito came in as he and Masahiro arrived, helping their mermaid princesses up, "You're kinda ruining the moment."  
"Crud!" the Triple Threat gasped. With the three newcomers now present, they too transformed.

 ** _"Pink Pearl Voice!"_**  
 ** _"Aqua Pearl Voice!"_**  
 ** _"Green Pearl Voice!"_**

Even in his new form, Nagisa's arm still caused him to cringe.  
"Nagisa, what's wrong?" Masahiro wondered.  
"It's just a scratch." he told him, "I'll be alright. Besides, we've got bozos to deal with." The next thing he knew, Hanon was linking her arm with his injured one.  
"Nagisa, stop trying to hide it!" she scorned, then spoke softly, "You're my Sea Prince. We'll do this together."  
"Alright." Then he requested, "Hey guys, mind if we take the lead on this one?"  
"Go for it." Kaito nodded.  
"It's all you two now." Luchia said with a smile.  
"We'll be sure to back you two up." Rina told them.  
"Show these three your power." Masahiro urged. With it, a melodious sound began to play out as Hanon and Nagisa took center stage.  
Though still cringing in fear, Christoph stammered, "Wh-What are you two wannabes gonna do?" Rather than outright reply, the aqua duo called,  
"Pichi Pichi Duet, Aqua Start!"  
This time around, they sung "Azure Blue", Hanon's personal song. The two began song with a duet intro, alternating between each other. As they sung, a mysterious power began to rise from Nagisa and Hanon singing together, making the light of their Live Stage engulf them all. The Triple Threat were then thrown into some kind of optical illusion, generated by the song. They were caught in a torrential underwater world, thrown around by whirlpools and crashing waves. As they sung, Hanon and Nagisa danced around like they were in a ball, twirling and spinning with grace and joy. When the others came in during the chorus, their power erupted to its peak. It pierced the Triple Threat like a sword, becoming unbearable for the three machines. And when the song ended, Hanon and Nagisa stood facing each other, their hands intertwined.  
"Love Shower Pitch!" Everyone but the aqua duo proclaimed, "Would you like an encore?"  
"What the heck man?!" Avery screamed.  
"What kind of show was that?!" Christoph shrieked.  
"Dr. Hishki never told us about this!" Javer griped. And all three machines disappeared in a flash. Luchia ad the others were quite stunned themselves. They felt how strong that song was, and it was stronger than it had been before, far stronger. They wondered if this could have been part of Nagisa being a Sea Prince, and how he shared that power with Hanon. When the Live Stage faded, Nagisa clasped his arm as it burst with pain.  
"Nagisa!" Hanon cried out, concerned that he had reached his limit. Taking their cue, the other four left to give them time alone.

* * *

On the beach, Hanon sat next to Nagisa in her mermaid form, tending to his injured arm.  
When she finished applying the last bandage, she puffed with pride, "There. All better."  
"Thank you, Hanon." Nagisa said to his mermaid, then he asked, "But, why didn't you tell me?"  
"Huh? Tell you what?"  
"The real reason you wanted me to come with you and Mitsuki-sensei. That you wanted to show how much you cared for me."  
"I wanted it to be a surprise. I wanted to let Mitsuki-sensei know who you were. If I told you, you would've acted differently. I wanted to show the you I love, the true you."  
Blushing, Nagisa chuckled, "Oh man!" After that, the two sat on the sandy shore, watching the sun cast a titian glow as it drifted into the horizon. Hanon linked her arm with Nagisa's, and rested her head on his shoulder,  
"It's funny." she spoke soothingly, "I used to criticize Luchia for falling in love. And now, I have someone I love." Nagisa said nothing in reply, for there were no words to be said. He just enjoyed the time he was having with his Mermaid Princess.  
Until, out of nowhere, Mitsuki came up and posed, "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" When they turned to find him standing over them, Nagisa immediately panicked and tried to shield Hanon from view.  
"Nothing to see here. Yep, nothing at all." he tried to fib.  
Growling, Hanon yanked him back down and ridiculed, "I told you already, Mitsuki-sensei already knows I'm a Mermaid Princess!"  
"Oh yeah."  
With a chuckle, Mitsuki said, "It looks like you both truly do care for each other. That makes me glad to see your love for myself." Nagisa felt slightly embarrassed by the comment, but he didn't deny it. Nor did he hide it, as he held Hanon's hand in his. "That reminds me. I have something for you two." He pulled out a handkerchief from his coat pocket, and gave it to them. When they unwrapped what was inside, they found two blue seashell halves that were perfectly identical.  
"Seashells?" Nagisa muttered in a puzzled fashion.  
"Tarou-chan, is this..?"  
"Never forget your love for each other." Understanding his intentions, Hanon took one half and gave the other to Nagisa. Then, they put them together, completing the shell. And then, hearts springing all over in their chest, they shared a passionate kiss.

* * *

A few days later found everyone at the airport. The Mermaid Princesses, the Sea Princes, and many students came to see Tarou Mitsuki off as he returned to his travels.  
"So, he's planning on returning to India?" Karen pondered.  
"Yep." Rina replied, "I guess he wants to start again, at the place where he met Sara."  
"I wonder if I'll run into him again." Seira thought.  
With a giggle, Meru told her, "Maybe you'll fall for him instead of Hugo-kun."  
"Not happening!"  
"Don't worry Seira. You choose who you'll love." Luchia assured.  
"Right. Cause who you love might be someone who will drive you crazy." Kaito joked.  
"Katio, you meanie!" And that gave everyone a laugh.  
Near the terminal gate, Hanon and Nagisa were having one final word with their music teacher.  
"You're really going to India, Tarou-chan?" Hanon asked.  
"Yes I am." he replied, "It may be hard at first, but the thought of you two together will help me through it."  
"We'll write to you when we can." Nagisa suggested, "Now that I'm out of summer school, I have all the time I need."  
"You barely passed your exam." Hanon mumbled.  
"I scraped by with a C+!"  
"That doesn't exactly assure me." The sight of the two squabbling made Mitsuki chuckle.  
"What's so funny?" Nagisa challenged.  
So Mitsuki explained, "It's said that when two people fight, they really care for each other. Now I see that to be true." That alone gave the three of them a good laugh. But then, an announcement came for Tarou Mitsuki's flight to board. With one final farewell, he parted ways with the duo he would cherish.  
 _Watch over them, Sara._ he prayed. As his plane took off, everyone gathered on the roof to watch it fly away. During so, Hanon clung to Nagisa's arm like she used to with Mitsuki. They brought out the halves of the seashell they were given, and completed it once again between them.  
"Together..." Nagisa started.  
"...Forever." Hanon finished.

* * *

 **Rina: Luchia, you need to get over your fear of thunder.**  
 **Luchia: I can't. Thunder is really scary. *squeals as thunder booms***  
 **Rina: Sometimes, I wonder how you manage being a Mermaid Princess.**  
 **Luchia: Rina, that was mean!**

Next time on Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo,  
Heart of a Lion

 **Luchia: I'll hide under the covers until the storm passes.**


	18. Heart of a Lion

**Well now, shall we begin? Anyways-**

 **Rina: Mind just cutting to the chase here?**

 **What the-? WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?! I DIDN'T CALL ON YOU!**

 **Rina: I've always been here. Where did you think I was?**

 **In the story where YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE! Get back in there! *charges but misses, shoving his head into the wall***

 **Rina: Now that he's out of the way, let's begin my chapter. RSBCS wants to make it known he does not own Mermaid Melody.**

 ***muffled* You are so gonna get it, mermaid!**

* * *

 **Chapter 18:  
Heart of a Lion**

A terrible storm blew into town. Wind and rain slammed into Pearl Piari, thunder boomed and lightning flashed, waves raged along the sea wall. Inside her room, Luchia lay in her bed, covers pulled up to her head. She was utterly terrified of thunder, and this storm was thundering with the sound. As another lightning strike flashed and more thudded with a magnifying 'boom', she shrieked in terror and pulled the covers over her head.  
 _I hate thunder._ she thought timidly, _Why did this storm have to come?_ She squealed once more as another boom resounded outside.  
Knocking on her door, Nikora inquired, "Luchia, are you still there?"  
"Y-Yes." Luchia whimpered. To confirm it even more, she let out another shriek when more thunder blared. Then she heard the door open, and peeked from under her covers to see who was coming in. When she did, she spotted Seira walking in, looking utterly horrified. "Seira?" she gasped, sitting up from her shelter, "What's the matter?"  
"Luchia... I'm scared." Seira said meekly, hunching over in fear. Concerned, Luchia got out of bed and went to escort Seira.  
When they sat down, she hugged her close, whispering, "It's okay. I'll be right beside you."  
"Thank you, Luchia." Seira uttered softly. When another boom of thunder followed a flash of lightning, both girls squealed and hugged close together.  
"I hate thunder!" they shouted, "I hate it!"

The storm was no better where Kaito was. He stood looking out his window, witnessing the sheets of rain bearing on his home, thunder and lightning rattling his windows. There was a fear that this storm would cause a flood, and he shared that dread. Still, this wasn't something that worried him the most. Rather, his thoughts were on Luchia and the others, but mostly Luchia. She hated thunder, and this storm was like her living a nightmare. It would be too dangerous for Kaito to venture over to Pearl Piari at the moment, so his best bet was to wait out this storm.  
As he continued to watch the downpour escalate, he began to feel like this storm wasn't normal. That something strange was responsible for it. He wasn't sure what it was, but he couldn't shake off the feeling that there was something not normal about this weather.  
In the midst of his ponderings, he heard the phone ring. When he picked it up, he answered, "Hello. Doumoto residence."  
"Ah, Kaito. It's Nikora."  
"Is something wrong?"  
"Yes and no. Everything's alright over here so far, but there is something I'd like your help with. You see, Rina had left Pearl Piari a little while ago, but she never told us exactly where she went."  
"I think I have a pretty good idea where that is. Hang on, I'll find out if she's there or not and call you back."  
"Thank you Kaito. Also, if you could do me one other favor it would be much appreciated."  
"What's that?"  
"Well, you know how terrified Luchia is when thunder rolls in. This storm has her absolutely petrified. I was hoping she and Seira could comfort each other, but would it be too much if stopped by and kept them company?"  
Before he could answer, he heard Hippo squawk, "What are you doing, Nikora-san?! It is bad enough that Kaito-san is a Sea Prince! You should not be encouraging this matter between him and Luchia-san!"  
"Hippo, what are you-" Nikora tried to stop.  
"Do not come over! Stay where you are!" he yelled in Kaito's ear over the phone.  
"Hippo, don't hang-" And the line cut out. Rubbing his ear from the scolding he had, Kaito set the phone back on the receiver.  
"Man, that penguin is persistent." he mumbled to himself. Kaito knew Hippo had a serious problem with the Sea Princes, and even more so with Kaito because of Luchia's long-held affection for him. Still, since Hippo had some connection to Aqua Regina, there had been the thought that the penguin would tone the 'hate' factor a notch or three. Still, Kaito was coming to accept that maybe that wouldn't change. Besides, he had other issues to occupy his time. Picking up the phone, he dialed the number for Masahiro's gym to see if Rina got there before the storm had hit.

* * *

At the gym Masahiro practiced at, most of the guys were heading back home to escape the rain before it worsened. As for Masahiro, he had to stay behind until it let up. The rain and wind was coming down like boulders, making it dangerous for him to get home on his motorcycle. He didn't mind, but it did spoil the plans he had to hang out with Rina and get to know her other side better. And just when he had the whole day mapped out too. But, on the plus side, it gave him some more practice time to get ready for his big match coming up soon.  
Heading back inside, Masahiro geared himself up by putting on some finger-less training gloves, and setting up a sandbag. From there, he started punching away, practicing his force as well as the location of each hit he made. Punching low, then up high, jab, hook, left and right. Masahiro put in 120%, however it wasn't just for his boxing match. Half his mind was also on Rina and her friends, and how often Dr. Hishki had sent the water demons and the Triple Threat to capture them. They had managed to defeat each attempt ever since they became the Sea Princes, but the doubt of each successive confrontation nagged him to no end. It seemed like their foes were getting smarter, concocting new ideas to either outsmart or overpower them. So he had to be ready, and always be on guard for the next strike.  
As he was about to deliver the last punch before moving on, Masahiro heard someone pounding on the front door. When he went to check, he found Rina outside.  
"Rina?!" he gasped, letting her in and out of the rain, "What are you doing here? It's dangerous."  
"I'm alright." Rina responded, shaking water off her umbrella, "I got caught outside during my walk. I noticed someone was still here in the gym, so I rushed over here to get out of this storm." Masahiro accepted Rina's reasons, but still felt concerned about her being out and about in the rain. Her jacket was soaked a bit, and the end of her hair was totally wet. He was rather intrigued that Rina hadn't transformed with all the water that was on her from outside. Because of the water, the mermaid princess let out a small sneeze due to a bit of the chill.  
"Here." Masahiro offered with a spare sweat towel, "You'd better dry off before you catch a cold." Thanking him, Rina set her bag and umbrella down and began drying herself off. While she did, Masahiro went to a smaller punching bag, and started a repetitive-coordination drill. the rapid rat-a-tat-tat of the drill sounded in the training room, Masahiro's fists a blur as he continued practicing his coordination.  
After he did a bit of that, Masahiro started on other drills and exercises to prepare. He did jump rope, crunches, and a little jogging practice. As she watched him do all this, Rina noticed a bit of a difference in his training. From time to time, she noticed him glancing over to her every now and again, a hint of worry and intensity in his eyes. She wasn't sure why that was present in him, as he knew she could very well take care of herself. Seeing this, she decided to get to the bottom of this.  
But before that, she heard the phone go off. So she answered, "Hello? Touin speaking."  
"Ah, Rina. So you are at the gym." came Kaito's voice.  
"Kaito?"  
"Nikora-san wanted me to figure out where you went in this storm."  
"I'm here at the gym with Masahiro. We'll try to weather out the storm until it passes."  
"Alright. I'll be sure to let Nikora-san know." With the exchange concluded, Rina hung up, and began thinking about how to understand Masahiro's hidden fear.

* * *

Back at Pearl Piari, Nikora was preoccupied looking over the finances for the hotel. Unfortunately, turnouts were not very favorable, and the hotel was seriously in danger of going belly up. If they were gonna drum up something to spur them on again, they'd need a revolutionary idea. While the Idol concerts Luchia and her friends did were relatively successful, they wouldn't be enough to satisfy the gap they had.  
With a depressed sigh, Nikora's thoughts soon turned back to Maki. Part of it was in wonder of how he managed to keep his business going, but also because of her feelings towards him, all lovey-dovey like a pair of lovebirds. She even recalled when Maki proposed to her, and how Luchia convinced her on the idea to accept. But then, she remembered that when she tried rescuing him the day she answered his proposal, he mentioned his wife who passed away: Soari. That told her he hadn't moved past her, and that's why she felt she had to refuse. Until he could truly move past what held him back, she would wait on accepting Maki's proposal.  
In that moment, someone came into the hotel, snapping Nikora back to reality. She looked up to find that it was Kaito, jacket drenched from the downpour outside. It was a good thing he arrived when he did, as Hippo had been wondering what Nikora was lost in thought about. And the new arrival diverted his attention, and his fury.  
"What are you doing here, Kaito-san?!" he squawked, "I thought I said for you to NOT come over here!"  
"Yeesh! Tone it down. I'm just here to check on Luchia and Seira." Kaito muttered in reply.  
"You are not needed! Luchia-san and Seira-san are fine." But the squeals that came after another thud from the thunder convinced Kaito otherwise. Ignoring the penguin, Kaito made his way upstairs. Hippo was about to follow, squawking like there was no tomorrow, until Nikora yanked him back. She knew Luchia needed the company, as well as help shaping Kaito's duty as a Sea Prince.

Knocking on the door, Kaito called, "Luchia? Are you in there?"  
"Kaito? Is that you?" Luchia wondered inside. Confirming her presence, Kaito ventured inside. Once he entered, more lightning flashed and crashed. In response, Luchia and Seira tackled him in fright, knocking him down.  
"OW! Luchia! Seira!"  
Realizing what they did, both Seira and Luchia helped Kaito up and said, "Sorry." Dusting himself off, Kaito escorted the girls back to the bed, then sat between them.  
"Are you both alright?" he asked. Seira didn't respond, but instead shuddered while glancing out the window.  
So Luchia answered, "This storm is like living our worst fears. Why did there have to be thunder?" Kaito chuckled a bit before she continued, "But, Seira seems to be even more afraid of this than me. Even though she's never been through a storm like this, she's petrified."  
"Maybe it's because of when she was absorbed by Mikeru."  
"What do you mean?"  
As he comforted Seira, Kaito elaborated, "When Seira was absorbed by Mikeru, I'd bet she was very afraid at times. That realm Mikeru existed in probably had thunder like this too, making it even more terrifying. So that might explain her intense fear right now." Seeing how Seira was hugging close to him, Luchia thought Kaito might have a point. Being absorbed by Mikeru might have helped reveal much about their foe, but that didn't necessarily mean Seira wasn't afraid during that time. It probably left her paralyzed of some things because of it. During her revelation, more thunder resounded, scaring the girls and causing them to hug close to Kaito, making him sigh in response.

* * *

For his final bit of training, Masahiro set up a practice dummy in the middle of the ring. his last challenge was to completely overwhelm his opponent, and send the dummy reeling. However, Masahiro did admit to himself that that was unlikely, as his foe was a dummy that didn't punch back. So, he just needed to really floor it. After psyching himself up with a couple of quick dodges, dashes, and swerves, Masahiro unleashed a supreme hay-maker that knocked the target off the ground, then slam down on its back side.  
Stepping into the ring, Rina joshed, "I don't think your next opponent is gonna let you floor them without even putting up a fight." Turning to her, Masahiro found Rina hanging her jacket on the edge of the ring, boxing gloves and headgear were fitted on her too.  
"Rina! What are you-" he said, slightly taken aback.  
"I think I'd make better training for you. Plus, I could do with the practice."  
"I-I can't. I don't want to fight you Rina."  
"Why? Because I'm a girl?"  
"No no no! That's not it at all.!"  
"Then what is? Why are you so afraid?" Masahiro didn't know how to answer, or rather he couldn't answer. He couldn't tell Rina, not with things as they were at the present moment. Seeing as how Masahiro wouldn't talk, Rina threw the first punch, knocking him to the ground. She would find out what she needed, even if she had to beat the answers out of him.  
Deciding he wasn't gonna get out of this, Masahiro recovered and fought back. For having never done boxing before, Rina certainly put up quite the fight. She was definitely quite agile, and her blows were nothing to shrug off either. Still, her moves were decently easy to read, and she left herself pretty open when she punched. After dodging for a good bit, giving a couple jabs to feel out how Rina reacted, Masahiro let loose with a heavy left hook, knocking Rina clean off her feet. As she lay on the ground, Masahiro's concern flared up as he knelt down to check on her. When he was close enough, Rina enacted her feint by slamming Masahiro with a rattling uppercut.  
"OW! That's kinda cheating, you know." he grimaced as he soothed his chin.  
"Don't expect your opponent to be as fair as you." Rina told him, "They'll pull the same kind of move. Still, *grimace*, that was a strong punch." The two decided to call it a day with training, and applied ice to their faces to help them recover. Masahiro had to respect his girlfriend's abilities. Clearly, she had to be pretty rough in the past, probably before she knew him. All the same, that just kept his mind racing with worry. He was the Sea Prince for Rina, tasked with caring for her by Aqua Regina. Because of that, Masahiro felt like he had to continue getting stronger, if only just to have her stay by his side.  
Then Masahiro looked out the window to check on the storm, and noticed something peculiar in the center of the city. That area was clear, a ring of clouds developed around it but didn't go through. How was there an eye in this storm?  
"Rina, look out there." he notified. When Rina saw the eye, it was like her suspicion had been confirmed. Without another word, Rina took off and went for the center of town, Masahiro trailing far behind.

* * *

When she approached, Rina saw who was creating this havoc. Lady Bat, Linhua, and Arara were dancing around a strange satellite dish in glee. They were celebrating Dr. Hishki's newest invention, and how it would capture the Mermaid Princesses once the city flooded over.  
They were so gleeful, that they didn't even notice Rina approaching them, until she announced, "So, you three are behind this storm."  
Spotting her, Arara scowled, "Oh look , it's THAT Mermaid Princess again!"  
Once the other two too notice, Rina continued, "I won't let you do anymore harm just to find us! Shut down that machine!"  
"Sadly, that's not up for debate." Lady Bat stated, "You see, once this lovely contraption starts a storm, it won't stop until the storm rains itself out. And by then, this whole place will be completely underwater." Rina scowled when she heard this. Dr. Hishki had to be getting reckless just to catch them. She wouldn't let him do anymore harm to her home.  
"So, Mermaid Princess," Lady Bat snickered as she and her companions prepared to sing, "Shall we start a new dance?" Instead of the three individual songs playing out, a new, darker song began to play out. It had a slow, ominous tune, charged with a negative vibe that made you think of ghouls, ghosts, and goblins. As their song started up, Rina felt like the world changed around her, turning into something like a graveyard. Lady Bat took the lead in singing their new song, "Return to Darkness." The song spoke of how the dark and evil in the world was ever present, and permeating the earth, air, and sea before them. That no one could escape, nor even attempt to try to run, from the lovely blackness before them. Lust, anger, greed, all of these existed in the dark beings of the world, and that no one was void of their icy grip.  
With Linhua and Arara supporting, the three water demons overwhelmed Rina. She tried drowning out the lies, drowning out the sorrow, the hate. But it was too strong for her. Her negative emotions began to remind her of times that she felt these ways. Her jealousy, her depression, her anger, most of it directed at her friends. Why were these thoughts pervading her mind? She had grown after all this time. This dark song... it was warping her.

* * *

It was during this time that Luchia, Kaito, and Seira's pearls began to shine.  
Holding up his pendant, Kaito wondered, "This light... like before. Could it mean..?"  
"Rina." Seira said aloud, "She's hurting."  
Confused, Luchia inquired, "Hurting? How do you know that Seira?"  
"Doesn't matter." Kaito called to action, "Rina is in trouble. We have to go find her." But as he reached the door, he noticed that Luchia wasn't following along. And when another flash of lightning resounded outside, she and Seira cried out in fright. "Luchia, let's go!" Kaito snapped.  
"Y-Yes." But once more, lightning caused her to cringe. Calming down, Kaito sat back beside her in an effort to comfort her. "Kaito, you go." she muttered.  
"What about you?" he brought back.  
"I can't help Rina this way. I hate thunder."  
"But Rina's your friend. You've helped her out when a storm like this raged before."  
"But Kaito-" she was interrupted by another boom of thunder, causing her to retreat into Kaito. "I'm not brave enough now. All this lightning, all this thunder. I'm too scared to even go outside my own room."  
"But you'll go if you're with me this time, right?" Luchia was confused by Kaito's question, displaying it plainly on her face.  
So Seira, who had been silent during the exchange, answered, "Luchia, you feel safe and comforted when you're with Kaito, don't you? And he's going to help Rina now, even when there's a storm brewing. You two can win together, like you always have. Because of your love for one another." The two lovebirds had to admire the wisdom that sometimes came from the young Mermaid Princess. It made Luchia feel proud that Seira was growing quite well, and had learned so much about love from her. And it was these words that made Luchia realize what she could do.  
"Seira, wait for us here." she instructed. Finally ready to go, Kaito and Luchia took off to rescue Rina. Yet, for all her wisdom, Seira was still deathly scared of lightning, and squealed when its boom rattled the air.

* * *

Back at the center fountain, Rina lay on the ground, on the verge of passing out not only from the dark song, but from her own inner darkness too. The three water demons smirked at their latest catch, and how they could finally subdue her.  
"Are you ready to let what you hold in your dark heart come to pass?" Lady Bat taunted, her fangs glistening in a wicked smile.  
"What a beautiful thing you will become, surrendering." Linhua flaunted, "Even Hishki-sama shall be exhilarated."  
"Then enough talk! Let's capture her already." Arara ushered. And she brought out another remote, and activated a pair of claws that came from the weather machine. Slowly, the mechanical hands approached Rina, the water demons savoring their near-victory. Rina tried to retort, to stand, to move. But she was paralyzed, on the verge of conking out. Her sheer willpower was what kept her from falling. She could only begin to regret confronting these three on her own. She should've waited for Masahiro, or Hanon, or someone to come and aid her. All she felt now was regret.  
But mere millimeters from taking her, Masahiro dove into the fray and snatched Rina from the machine's clutches. When he did, the two of them tumbled into the fountain, reverting Rina to her mermaid form while splashing their foes. The shock from the water revitalized Rina, and she quickly took notice to the fact that Masahiro had saved her.  
"Rina, are you alright?" Masahiro panted, clearly from rushing after her from the gym.  
"Masahiro!" Rina gasped. Seeing that she was okay, Masahiro began to laugh. Confused, and a little outraged, Rina barked, "Why-Why are you laughing?! That was reckless!"  
"I'm laughing because this was how we had first met. Remember?" And she did remember. She had been so forlorn and lost then that Masahiro thought she was going to do something horrible to herself, so he tackled her and saved her from presumably doing so. Seeing how this was something of a repeat of their first meeting, Rina began laughing too. She and Masahiro laughed so hard that they couldn't sit up, and lay in the water in jubilee.  
"Doesn't this feel good Rina? To laugh your worries away?" Masahiro asked after calming down from laughing.  
Settling down herself, Rina replied, "It does. I feel so relieved now."  
"I know a lot bothers you from time to time. I feel the same too." Sensing her confusion, he elaborated, "I've been worried about a lot of things. My family and and their business, my boxing, but most of all I worry about you, and the dangers you face. I worry that, one day, you will get hurt. And that I can't do anything about it. That's why I acted the way I did before. Because I really do love you, Rina." Touched by his words, and his openly admitting his fault, Rina scooted over to his side, hovering over him with a smile she often did not show.  
"I worry about you too, Masahiro." she told him, "But I love you all the same. You are Hamasaki Masahiro, my Sea Prince. My one and only." The mood was heightened to its peak, and the mermaid began approaching her prince, their eyes closed for the moment.  
"Ugh! I really hate watching this trash!" Arara whined at last, totally ruining the moment. Putting their minds to the fight at hand, Masahiro got up, picking up Rina as he did so that they may both confront the water demons. When they rose, their pearls shined extra bright to blind their foes as they began to transform. As they did, their friends came upon the scene too after having seen where the disturbance was, and began to transform as well.

 ** _"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"_**

When they finished and had united, Hanon noticed how the mood seemed different, and questioned, "Is there something we should know about, Rina?"  
"Same for you, Masahiro." Nagisa added with suspicion.  
"We'll tell you later." Rina waved off.  
Wanting to keep focus, Kaito initiated, "Everyone ready?"  
When everyone replied 'yes', Luchia began, "Let's do it!"

 _ **"Pichi Pichi Duet, Live Start!"**_

Once more, they sung their song 'Bridges', singing of their connections to each other. They sung of how they would stay strong, and remain united. Even if the earth quaked, or storms raged, they would continue to connect, and continue to love. In this time around, they also sung of how they yearned to connect, that it was an ever present drive within their hearts. They sung of how love was that bridge, that spanned all the things that drove people apart. And that they would share this love to all. With such a charged melody, the water demons were whaling and crying out as the song engulfed them in its power. Their machine shorted out, and the song seemed to clear the sky, brightening the day with glorious rays of light. As they finished with the final chorus, the pairs took each other by the hand, and sang out with their hearts, finally obliterating the weather machine.  
"Love Shower Pitch! Would you like an encore?"  
"We don't want one!" the water demons shrieked, and disappeared in their usual fashion. After they left, everyone shared a good, long laugh for no real reason but to be joyful.  
When they stopped, Kaito asked Masahiro and Rina, "So, are you two alright?"  
"We'll be fine." Masahiro answered, taking Rina's hand, "So long as we have each other." Rina became so flustered that she began to blush.  
"What's this? Rina is getting embarrassed." Hanon teased.  
"You're one to talk, and who you had to deal with before." Rina slyly replied.  
"Hey, that's mean!" Hanon and Nagisa whined. But Luchia and Kaito found joy in the scene, and laughed a good laugh.

* * *

Back at Pearl Piari, Luchia had become quite proud of herself for overcoming her fear. She boasted it to the other Mermaid Princesses, and Hippo.  
"As long as I have Kaito beside me, I am not afraid of anything!" she proclaimed proudly in the lobby.  
"So you said, for the 8th time." Karen grumbled.  
"Luchia-san, it is good that you overcame your fear." Hippo tried to usher down, "But please, don't get carried away."  
"And don't forget it was with me." Kaito reminded, "You need to do it yourself to really be proud of it."  
"I will. Give me a storm, and I'll brave it through." As if answering her challenge, a loud 'BOOM' rang out behind Luchia, causing her to squeal with fright and take shelter next to Kaito.  
"You'll brave any storm?" Hanon toyed, revealing a pan she and Nagisa used to make the noise.  
"Hanon!" Luchia growled angrily, giving chase after the two.  
"Nagisa, bring back those pans!" Nikora joined. And everyone enjoyed the show taking place before them.

* * *

The next day was Masahiro's big boxing match. He was facing a burly opponent much bigger than himself. With a scowl that made him quiver, the guy regarded Masahiro like a lion about to toy with its prey. It almost made him cringe and want to turn back. But then, he looked out to the stands, and saw Rina's face among the crowd staring back at him. Her fierce expression set on him sparked a fire in his spirit. He could take this fighter on, he would not fall to him. The two boxers met, and bumped gloves to wish each other a good match. And when the bell rang, Masahiro thought of Rina, and struck!

* * *

 **Coco: What a cute boy. He's great!  
Meru: Great? What do you mean?  
Coco: He's an artist! And he makes some lovely artwork!  
Meru: Are you sure it's the art you like?**

Next time on Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo,  
Brush Away

 **Coco: I wonder if I should reveal myself just to be a model.**


	19. Brush Away

**Phew! That got intense last chapter. Unfortunately, I've got some bad news. This is the last of the chapters I have pre-posted from DA. So from here on, chapters here will come up after I post them on my other profile.**

 **But enough sad stuff, this chapter is gonna feature Coco and her special friend. Who is this special friend? Well, I could tell you. But where's the fun in that. So just sit back, grab your paintbrushes, set up the easel, and... wait, WHAT?!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Mermaid Melody or its characters. All rights to their appropriate owners.**

* * *

Chapter 19:  
Brush Away

Out on the beaches of East Japan, the water was mellow and serene. The surface sparkled as light danced off the cerulean color. A bit out from shore, Coco could be found enjoying a relaxing day's swim. After having flipped, leaped, and enjoyed swimming around playfully, she laid on the surface as she gazed to the clouds in thought.  
Letting out a long breath, Coco pondered, "I wonder if there's someone out there for me. Luchia, Hanon, and Rina have their Sea Princes; Seira has that Hugo fellow; even Karen and Noelle have their guys. When will I find a guy to love like them?" She was quite popular with boys, whole bunches of them. Boys were attracted to her like bees to flowers, yet not one of them stuck out to Coco as THE one she wanted. Giggling to herself on the idea of finding her lover, Coco flicked her tail, ecstatic, and continued to relax.  
Unknown to her, a boy peered from behind a couple rocks, having spotted the yellow mermaid floating without a care in the world. Inspired, he brought out his sketchbook and pencil, and began to make an image from what he saw. Taking extra care to keep it detailed, the boy provided a quick outline of the figure in case she disappeared before he was finished. She did disappear beneath the waves after a while, but by then he had imprinted enough of her image to complete the sketch. When he was done, he looked at what he drew: an overhead visual of the mermaid laying in the water, long hair fanning out under her, hands behind her head, a pendant around her neck, and her distinctive tail.  
"Guess I came at a good time." the boy muttered to himself as he admired his work, "But I'll see more of them someday soon."

* * *

The next afternoon, Karen, Noelle, and Coco were in town running errands for Nikora and the hotel. They had drawn the short straw between them and the others, and were not entirely thrilled by the labor. Still, they had managed to get everything on Nikora's _long_ list. Thus having them carry extra heavy grocery bags.  
"Coco, hurry up!" Karen snapped, noticing the yellow Mermaid Princess lagging.  
"I can't! This stuff is too heavy!" Coco whined in response.  
"Stop your complaining! We'll be done when we get back." No matter how badly she didn't want to do this, Coco knew there was no getting out of it. However, as she was about to resume, some guys had heard her griping, and noticed her ordeal. So a few of them approached and asked, "Can we help you carry your groceries miss?"  
Startled and flustered by the offer, Coco replied, "T-Thank you."  
"Are your pretty little arms tired from all this heavy lifting?" one of the guys inquired.  
"Um, only a little."  
"Allow me to massage them for you." another offered.  
"Hey, I asked first!"  
"But I saw her first!"  
"Please, everyone," Coco tried to calm, "there's no need for that. You can help me out if you'd like." But her words went unheeded, and the men started a tussle among each other. Freaked out, Karen and Noelle rushed in for their friend, somehow extracting her from the skirmish before she got hurt and saving the groceries.  
"What's with you attracting boys?" Noelle quizzed.  
Coco answered with a chuckle, "It must be a gift of mine." Just then, the boys noticed her relocation, and started after her with all kinds of offers.  
"Run! Stampede!" Karen panicked. The three ditched and fled the pursuing crowd.

After what felt like kilometers of running from the boys wanting to serve her on their hands and feet, Coco finally managed to catch her breath by hiding out in a bit of shrubbery. That was the good news. The bad news was that she had been separated from Karen and Noelle. She had no idea when they got lost, only that it was at some point during their fleeing. She had opted to remain hidden until the boys' hype died out. She was fond of the attention guys would give her, but never to the point where they would fight over her. When that came up then, Coco started to consider her approach to boys, and felt a bit saddened that she hadn't really considered how competitive guys could get over her.  
While she was sitting in her hiding place, a boy with light-brown hair tied in a small ponytail trailing behind him, wearing a yellow shirt with a red vest covered in zippered pockets, and green, paint-covered shorts stopped in front of the shrub. He scanned the area around him before sitting down with his back to Coco. She noticed that the boy carried some kind of book under his arm, and several pencils and pens stuck out from his vest pocket.  
The boy looked through his flip book, and spoke, "I can help you avoid these guys." Coco was a little startled, and didn't quite understand who he was talking to all of a sudden. "You're trying to avoid those boys patrolling the square, aren't you?" he said once more, clearly indicating she was his recipient, "I can give you a way to do that."  
Keeping a hushed voice, Coco asked, "Aren't you like the other boys? And how did you see me?"  
"I'll explain later." the guy replied, slipping a pair of sunglasses and a black baseball cap to her without even looking, "Put these on, then go to the cafe behind us, and ask for Miyu. Tell her Ryu wants a package delivered, and to brush off guys looking for someone. Take this too." Then he slipped a paintbrush to her. "Follow what Miyu says. And don't talk to anyone else, especially other guys." Before Coco could ask who this mysterious helper was, he got up and walked away without even a glance back. Figuring it was her best, and only, chance to get out of this mess, Coco hid her hair under her cap, then put on the sunglasses. Taking the brush last, she got out of her hiding spot, and looked to the cafe in question.  
It was actually a cosplay cafe, with waitresses dressed like maids and the waiters like butlers. Even the people dining were dressed as various manga characters; one boy wore an orange jumpsuit, a spiky-yellow wig, and a headband which featured a leaf with a spiral.  
Keeping her head down, Coco walked up to one of the waitresses, and requested, "I need to see Miyu." The girl acknowledged without question, and went inside to get her. Miyu came out, dressed like Miku from Vocaloid, her hair dyed teal with two long pigtails, wearing a school outfit that consisted of a plated skirt, long, black sleeves and black shoes.  
"You needed to see me?" Miyu spoke.  
"Yes. Ryu wants a package delivered, and to 'brush off' guys looking for someone." Then she showed her the brush to confirm who sent her.  
Realizing the need right away, Miyu whispered, "Follow me, and keep quiet no matter what." Then she pulled her to the back room to help Coco escape.

* * *

A few minutes later found Miyu driving a small cart to the beach, a trove of boxes stuffed in the bed. She had to stop to 'brush off' some guys looking for a girl in yellow. Some even tried hitting on her, to which she huffed in refusal and drove away without another word. Once she left town for the coast, things mellowed out, and she began to cruise normally. When she had gone a fair bit down, she parked on the side and went to remove some of the boxes from the back until she got to one marked with a brush.  
Clearing her throat, she said, "You can come out now." To her immense relief, Coco shot out of the box, spraying packing peanuts all over.  
"I think... I might be a little claustrophobic." Coco panted, "But, thank you."  
Passing her a coupon, Miyu replied, "Don't mention it. Come try out our cafe next time you aren't being hounded. I'll give you and any friends of yours a good deal." And before she took off, she added, "And let that guy that owns the brush know he owes me." With that, she drove back to the cafe, leaving Coco and her things by the sea wall.

Relieved to have gotten out of that scrape, Coco was about to start for Pearl Piari in case Noelle and Karen had gone back without her. When she turned to do so, she spotted someone on the beach. It was the boy from before, standing before an easel as he tried capturing the image of the beach. Curious, she went down to see him, as well as return the brush he gave her. Glancing a look past him, Coco saw more clearly how detailed his painting was. The picture wasn't colored just yet, but the pencil work alone made her feel like the water could just flow right out of the canvas.  
Coco tapped the boy's shoulder to get his attention, to which he turned to her and said with surprise, "Well, you listened! Good thing too. Those guys were looking ready to start a killing spree."  
"Wh-What?! They wouldn't!" she gasped.  
"Relax, I'm just exaggerating. Don't worry." he laughed, "Name's Ryu, by the way. Ryu Yamada."  
"Oh. I'm Coco. Why did you help me back there, Ryu? Why weren't you like those other boys?"  
"My sister has often dreamed of being a secret agent; tracking down bad guys and traveling the world in disguise. So, I like to give her moments where she can act like one. That, and you looked a bit desperate for help."  
"Sister? You aren't making any sense. How did you see me anyway?"  
"I've got a bit of an artist's eye. I can pick out contrast in colors anywhere, even ones out of place like your yellow hair. And Miyu is my sister, though she tries to act like we're unrelated." This confused Coco quite a bit. She was unable to make heads or tails of what he was telling her, and even less from his explanations. Upon seeing her confused face, Ryu pulled out his book he carried and started sketching, baffling Coco even more. After a few minutes, Ryu showed her a sketch of her perplexed expression with such acute detail. Coco was amazed at how well it was done, and within a split-second from seeing her demonstrate confusion.  
Packing his easel and canvas, Ryu elaborated, "I've always wanted to be an artist since I was little. I loved the feeling of a pencil curving shapes, or paint filling in color. I love to create what I see, to catch what might be a fleeting glimpse of something wonderful."  
As he snapped his bag closed, Coco admired, "You must be the most famous artist ever then."  
"I wish I were, sometimes." he replied, becoming mournful, "But, my dad passed away three years ago. He was my number one fan, and would give me whatever I needed to create. Now, my mom is trying to get me into the military overseas, and my sister is off on her own adventure. Still, I feel like my dad wants me to continue following my dream. When I sketch, draw, or paint the world around me, I do it for him." Coco was moved by Ryu's story, and by his conviction. In fact, she admired him for it. Ryu wanted to be set apart from everyone, to strive for a talent he cherished. It was this side of him that made her smile.  
Hefting his bag, Ryu then asked, "What about you? What are you striving for?"  
"Me?! Well, um... uh..." But Coco had no idea how to reply to his question.  
"If you want to discuss it a bit with me, would you mind being a model for a contest project I'm working on?"  
"A model? I'd love to!"  
"Whoa! I never figured you would be that ecstatic. But, thanks. I'll come by where you live and pick you up tomorrow." Coco agreed, letting him know where Pearl Piari was.  
Then she gave him his brush, and remembered, "You're sister, Miyu, said you owe her. What did she mean?"  
"I might tell you later. See ya, Coco." And he made his way home. Coco thought the boy seemed a little strange, especially with how he didn't act quite like he was flirting or trying to win her affection. He just seemed... normal. Well, as normal as he can be, she figured. But she thought she'd find out more about him tomorrow, and started on her way home.

* * *

The next morning at Pearl Piari, Coco was enjoying a relaxing bath. The other day, she got chewed out by Nikora and Karen for getting lost and losing the groceries. She was lucky her friends managed to bring her batch to the hotel, but they had been quite cranky from the situation she had put them in back in town. Even so, she got off lightly, and was exempted from some of the other chores Nikora had in store for her. So she lay in the tub, contemplating yesterday's events.  
The boy she ran into then, Ryu, had seemed rather sympathetic. More over, unlike the other guys that chased after her, he wasn't trying to win her or anything of the sort. He just provided aid, asking for little in return. His actions were separate from the normal guy pattern she was used to. And he had an amazing talent too. She could imagine that, one day, Ryu would become a very well-known and respected artist the world over. She hoped he might succeed in that endeavor one day.  
Once she finished with her bath, she dried off, got changed, then sat in front of her mirror to brush her long hair. It was at that moment when Meru knocked on the door, and asked to be let in. Obliging, Coco opened the door to let her in, and found her bringing in the Mermaid Cards.  
"Coco-sama, do you want to see what your love fortune says?" Meru asked eagerly.  
"Love Fortune?" Coco quizzed, "Meru, why don't you do that with Hanon or Luchia."  
"They're out with their boyfriends today. And Seira-sama said she was working at Maki-san's. Though I think she just snuck away to see Hugo-kun."  
"Oh, alright then. But why a Love Fortune?"  
As Coco took a seat on her bed, Meru explained, "Because I want to know if we'll find love. Hanon-sama found hers. Everyone did, even Hippo-san."  
"Not Taki-san."  
"I heard from Luchia-sama. She has one too." That was news Coco did not expect to hear. "Since everyone has found love, I want to see if we will too. Please, Coco-sama?" Meru sure was persistent on the matter, her begging being the obvious clue. And Coco wouldn't mind having a little fun predicting if she would find love. So she agreed, causing Meru to cheer.  
Setting the cards on the floor, Meru shuffled them vigorously, evidently wanting a good fortune to come up. When that was finished, she set one card down, then three cards below that.  
"Now, Hanon-sama said each card represents us now, before, and later. So then I should flip the card on the far right." And she did, revealing an image of a clam with a pearl inside. At this, Meru freaked out and moaned, "Not fair. And I put my heart into it."  
"Um, Meru, what was your fortune?" Coco inquired nervously, "Was it something bad?"  
"Worse." she mumbled, "It says that I have already found love, and will never find another ever again."  
"Are you sure you read it right? That there's no mistake?"  
"That's it!" Meru shot up, "I did it all wrong! I need to think of myself when I shuffle."  
And while she did that, they heard Noelle call, "Coco, some boy came to see you."  
"Ryu!" Coco squeaked, then said, "Sorry Meru, but I need to go somewhere." In her mad dash, she scattered the Mermaid Cards while Meru was just about finished shuffling.  
"Coco-sama!" she called in outrage. But she sighed, seeing no point in continuing. While she was collecting the cards, she found one face up. It had the image of scarlet coral, surrounded by bubbles.  
"This card?" she pondered, "But this means that Coco-sama will find one who has true adoration, one that doesn't involve looks or gifts. Why would-?" But she stopped short when she put it together. She ran out of the room calling, "Coco-sama!" And the coral card fluttered to the ground atop the others, remaining mysteriously face up.

* * *

When she met up with him, Coco was led by Ryu towards town for his little project. He had her link arms with him to give any guys wanting to bother her the impression that she was already taken. Coco felt a little discouraged at first, but remembered what happened yesterday. After a while of walking this way, she began to actually enjoy the prospect, especially when many of the guys that normally ran to her just scowled when they saw that she had someone else.  
Ryu and Coco walked through town for a bit, then veered off to the beach after passing enough people. Coco was still trying to understand why he was doing what he was doing, and sometimes asked for why. Ryu's only reply was, "It's for your own protection. Trust me." It wasn't much of an answer, and he never said more beyond that. So Coco opted not to inquire further since she would not find out more.  
Once at the beach, Ryu began setting up his easel and canvas, and laid out a few paints, brushes, and pencils for what he was about to do.  
As he prepped, he told Coco, "I don't normally say this, or allow it, but you can take a look at my sketchbook if you'd like. So you can get a better idea about what I like to draw." Intrigued by his offer, Coco picked up his sketchbook to see what it held. She found that many of the pages included scenery, mostly of places by the water. Each had such fine detail that Coco could practically identify where it was drawn. After those were sketches of people, most likely friends or relatives. There were even a couple featuring Miyu and Coco, like the one from yesterday's meeting. As she flipped to another Miyu sketch, she noticed the one below seemed different.  
But before she could even look at it, Ryu closed the book hurriedly, and tittered, "That part I don't really like to share yet. I'm a little hesitant to show what's there."  
As he took the sketchbook back, Coco wondered, "Why? What's wrong with those?"  
"Nothing's wrong! I just don't feel ready yet." Skeptical but polite, Coco respected his decision. Though she was still curious to see what those sketches were. As Ryu finished setting out his materials, he directed to Coco, "Go and lie over by the water." She adhered to his instruction, and set herself between the waves and Ryu. "I'll need you to sit up a bit. Prop yourself with your arm for stability please." So Coco did, though she was unsure why she needed to do this. "Perfect. Turn to me a bit." And she did. "Excellent! Hold that for a couple of minutes." With pencil and brush in hand, Ryu started to process. And true to his word, only a couple minutes after starting, he let her relax.  
With it, he worked on the rest of the process, muttering to himself as he did. He worked with such vigor and passion, Coco had to wonder what he was up to. He was being so secretive about the stuff he was doing, and sometimes looked behind him like someone could be spying on him. He weaved and brushed, swathed and dotted, smeared and curved, working up a sweat in the work he did. After several minutes of this, Ryu was finally satisfied with his work. He was about to tell Coco that they were done, but she had disappeared from her spot.  
"Kawaii!" he heard her squeal from behind him, giving him such a scare, "That's so beautiful, Ryu!" What he had drawn was Coco, but as a mermaid. He drew her with a gorgeous yellow tail and all the mermaid details, the ocean a backdrop behind her.  
"Coco!" Ryu yelped, trying to hide the image as his face turned red with embarrassment, "You aren't supposed to see this!"  
"But it's so pretty. You really are a talented artist."  
"I didn't mean to ruin it! Honest!"  
"Ruin? Ryu, it looks wonderful. I love it."  
Surprised, Ryu stammered, "You... really like it? Truly?"  
"Ryu, what's the matter?" Coco quizzed, "Don't you like what you do?"  
"I do." he sighed, "But, I've had other people say otherwise. I'm sorry Coco. You see, you aren't the first person I've asked to be a model. As an artist, I sometimes need someone to framework an image. And the kinds of drawings I like to do with models are... mermaids. But, every time I did, they would be outraged and destroy what I made."  
"Ryu..."  
"Despite that, I still love to draw mermaids. I'm fascinated by their beauty, and their spirit."  
Just then, Coco went up to him and complemented, "It's a very lovely drawing. I love it, and I know others will too."  
His face shining with a smile, Ryu replied, "Th-Thank you, Coco."  
"Do you want to draw another using me as your model?" The aspiring artist accepted the invitation eagerly. This time, he had Coco stand against the blue sky, and worked furiously on the canvas.

He was just about finished when they heard, "There he is." Shocked, the two looked back to see a horde of Coco's admirers gathered along the sea wall. "Well well, look who the sneaky scoundrel is. Trying to hide this lady for yourself?"  
Cracking his knuckles, another guy jeered, "What should we break first? You, or your stuff?" The thought of these boys trashing Ryu's hard work petrified Coco. What were they thinking, wanting to hurt him like this?! As the boys pressed in, Ryu tried gathering his things and packing them away for a quick escape. But the paint was still pretty wet, and the easel got stuck while collapsing. He tried frantically to undo the lock on the stand, only it wouldn't budge no matter what he did. The gang of guys drew closer, and trampled over Ryu's sketchbook.  
Before they got any further, Coco surprised everyone by barring their way and crying out at the top of her lungs, "STOP THIS! LEAVE HIM ALONE!" At this, they all dutifully halted in their tracks. "Just leave us alone! Ryu has done nothing to you, and he doesn't deserve this. He has gone through so much hardship already, losing his father and having his talent rejected by people. Just leave him alone, PLEASE!" The way she spoke to the guys, practically telling them the guy she liked was Ryu, they were quite stunned. One of the guys then noticed the sketchbook beneath their feet, and picked it up. They began passing it up towards the two, but about midway dropped it. Then, to Coco's horror, they started stomping on it, kicking it, even dishing sand into it. When they were done, the guys stomped off, shoving the book up to them at long last. Coco dropped to her knees in dismay, gingerly taking up a now bent sketchbook. The cover was tweaked, the binding slightly awry, and a few pages were noticeably torn at the edges.  
Before Coco could release the tears building in her eyes, Ryu assured, "It's okay Coco. Look." Taking it from her, Ryu showed that all the pictures inside were alright. Any damage done to the book hadn't really affected the work inside. "It's alright. I've had this sketchbook for years, ever since my dad first got it for me. I still have several pages left in it, and it has endured much worse abuse."  
"Ryu." Coco whispered, surprised by how well he was taking what had been incurred.  
"The thing I love about art, is how enduring it is. No matter what happens, art and artists continue to thrive. So don't cry, don't be disheartened. Art endures."  
"But what about you?"  
"I'll be fine. Thanks for standing up for me though." Even though he told her not to be saddened, Coco still couldn't help feeling bad for Ryu getting caught in that near scrape. Looking at his understanding smile and friendly face, she began to feel at ease somehow. Moreover, he seemed to make her feel... joyful. Jubilant. Coco didn't understand this new feeling that was seeping into her. Whatever it was, it made her hands tremble. Holding a fist over her heart, she wondered if this was what everyone else felt when they were with their boyfriends. She started to believe that this was what love felt like. Could it be true?  
Sitting down in front of her, Ryu made the query, "Are you alright?"  
"I... think so." Coco stuttered, setting down beside him. Gazing back at his expression, Coco felt entranced. This boy, the one who treated her not like some prize, but a true friend, taking a stand against admirers to help her. She tried to figure out if it was love that set her ablaze with emotion.  
It was in that stilled moment that Ryu shoved Coco aside, charging past her unexpectedly into a mechanical claw. He bashed into it head-on, literally, causing it to reel back as he crumpled in a heap.

"Ryu!" Coco screamed.  
As she caressed him to see if he was alright, she then heard, "These boys are so annoying! Why do they always gotta be the hero for these mermaid princesses?!" Looking up, Coco noticed three boys dressed in red, blue, and green respectively. The Triple Threat! Coco remembered being told about these boys. This did not bode well for her, having heard about Noelle's encounter with them.  
"Alright, Yellow Pearl Mermaid Princess," the red one, Javer, dictated, "Why don't you come along quietly, and no one has to get hurt."  
"Yeah!" the green one, Avery, inputted, "You know, Yellow is another favorite color of mine. Maybe you'll ditch the dude and be my girlfriend."  
"As if!" Coco snapped back, "I don't even know you!"  
"Then let us introduce ourselves." Christoph spoke. So they spoke a pose, and announced,

"WE are the Triple Threat!"  
"The rad-awesome Avery!"  
"The cool and collected Christoph!"  
"And the red-hot leader, Javer!"

While they were busy introducing themselves, as well as admire their "coolness", Coco checked on Ryu. She found him to be alright, just knocked out based on the welt on his forehead. He needed time to recover, but that couldn't happen if Coco remained. So, while the clowns were distracted, Coco slipped into the water and fled the scene.  
"Hey Mermaid Princess!" Avery called, showing off his guns like a macho man, "Wanna go with this... guy?" That's when they noticed a bit of an absence among the scene. Wigging out, they yelled, "WHERE DID SHE GO?!"

* * *

To her utter amazement, Coco had managed to slip past the Triple Threat without having some mech chasing her and Ryu. Even better, Coco found an undersea cave a bit down. Breaching an air pocket inside, Coco found it to be safely breathable. So she brought Ryu to a small shore, and set him on the driest area possible. When she did, he started to come to.  
"Oh, you're alright!" she sighed with relief.  
Noticing his caretaker, Ryu muttered, "It-It's you. The mermaid from before."  
"From before?"  
"Yeah. I... saw you swimming the other day. I even sketched you." As he searched himself, Ryu shot up and began to panic when he realized he didn't have his stuff on him. "My stuff! Where is it?!"  
"It's okay. It's still on the beach where I saved you."  
"And Coco! What about Coco?! She was just with me!"  
"I didn't see anyone else with you. Maybe she went to get help."  
"But she almost got attacked! I was trying to save her!"  
"And you did. Just like I am helping you." Simmering down, Ryu became more level-headed.  
"Thank you, mermaid-chan." he said when he was calmed, "If I might ask, why did you bring me here?"  
"The people who attacked you, they are after me." she explained, "They work for an evil man who's after me and six others like me. He wants to reveal us to the world."  
"But if he does that, you'll disappear, won't you?! Why would he do that?!"  
"I do not know. But, we should be safe down here for the time being." Ryu had to admit that this was secluded enough to lay low for a while. Still, he did feel bothered about one thing. But he waited to ask the question when he saw mermaid's face, and how forlorn and concerned she appeared to be. Taking her by the hand, he gave her his warm smile to try and ease what was troubling her.  
And Coco did begin to feel at ease. Yet, being alone in this sea cave with Ryu just made her heart hyper. She just wanted to sit close to him, to be close to him, to be with him. It felt like she wouldn't be able to settle down unless she was with the one she felt she loved.  
"What's your name?" she asked softly.  
"Ryu. Ryu Yamada." he answered.  
"Ryu. Could you... I mean, would I... can we, um..."  
"Sit by me." His statement startled Coco a little, partly because she had been trying to ask to do so.  
"May I?"  
"If it will help comfort you. But, I think I could do with the comfort too." Excited but calm, Coco scooted over to Ryu, resting her head on his chest.  
"Thank you, Ryu." she whispered.

* * *

Back on the beach, the Triple Threat were scouring the area with the art stuff for their missing mermaid. They searched high and low, low and high, but their target was naught.  
When they reconvened, Christoph suggested, "Maybe she fled to the ocean? Those mermaids are prone to pull that stunt."  
"Then let's stop gabbing and get to grabbing!" Javer ordered as he slammed his fist into his hand.  
"You bet!" Avery added, "I am definitely eager... to make that yellow mermaid my girlfriend." Ignoring his bizarre comment, the trio made a move to search the ocean when,  
"Stop right there!" The three boys turned to see a little girl with light-aquamarine hair coming up to them from the sea wall. "You leave Coco-sama alone!" she commanded. The Triple Threat just laughed at her bravado, undeterred by her words.  
"Who's gonna make us, little miss?" Javer challenged.  
"We will!" came three pairs of voices. And springing from behind the sea wall were the Mermaid Princesses and Sea Princes, transforming to Triple Threat's utter horror.

 _ **"Pink Pearl Voice!"  
"Aqua Pearl Voice!"  
"Green Pearl Voice!"**_

Transforming into their second forms, the duos stood before their enemy, music playing their song.  
"We heard you were causing trouble for our friend." Hanon started.  
"Don't think we'll let you get away with that!" Nagisa barked.  
"We won't let you do anymore harm!" Masahiro proclaimed.  
"You will never achieve your master's vile plan." Rina warned.  
"Now we will send you back to the deep..." Kaito said first.  
"With our song of hope!" Luchia concluded proudly.  
"Pichi Pichi Duet, Live Start!"  
Against these foes, they sung their pair song, "Bridges". The song ringing out with their message about making connections with others. They proclaimed to be strong, and in unity. That even if storms raged, or the earth quaked, that they would continue to connect and share their love. Once more, the Triple Threat could not bear the song, their ears shorting from the immense power.  
"Who has the controls this time?" Javer yelled to his comrades. Both Avery and Christoph returned that neither of them had the remote for a new machine. And they realized that they had forgotten it back at Dr. Hishki's lab.  
Finished, the group rang out, "Love Shower Pitch! How about an encore?"  
"Forget this! Let's ditch!" Javer scowled.  
He and Christoph teleported away, but Avery retorted, "This ain't over yet! I'll be back, and that Yellow Pearl Mermaid Princess will make me her boyfriend! Wait and see!" Then he too teleported away.  
"What was that about?" Nagisa wondered, "Why would he want to be Coco's boyfriend?"  
"No clue." Luchia and Hanon shrugged together.  
"Well, if he ever tries to move in on Coco, I'll be there to stop him!" Meru announced.  
"Take it easy Meru." Kaito urged.  
"Let's not jump to any conclusions yet." Masahiro advised. But that still left one question: where was Coco anyway?

* * *

It didn't take too long to find her. After having split up to search, Meru found her in the underwater cave, along with Ryu. When she came upon the scene, Coco was sleeping soundly against Ryu, who had his arm around her. When she saw them together, she nearly flipped in jubilee. Another pair had been made, and Coco might possibly have found someone to be her Sea Prince. It was an exhilarating thought to consider for the young mermaid. Even though she didn't want to disturb the scene, Meru went up to the Mermaid Princess and shook her gently to wake her up.  
"Coco-sama." Meru spoke softly. Coco started coming to, and took notice to Meru being present.  
"Meru?" she responded groggily, "What are you doing here?"  
"I came here looking for you, Coco-sama. Luchia-sama and the others chased off the Triple Threat. It's safe to return now." Coco looked up to Ryu's sleeping face, and Meru could tell right away that she didn't want to disappear on him. She didn't want to leave his side, even. They both knew the complications that would arise if he didn't return to the human world, but Coco couldn't bear to see this moment end.  
"Coco-sama, you love him right?" Meru questioned, though it wasn't really a question.  
"I do." she replied, "I truly love him."  
"Then please, let him return to his home." Coco didn't like it, but she knew what she had to do.

* * *

Ryu came to find himself back on the beach, on the exact spot where he was conked out. All his stuff was still spread out around him, just the way he left it. Since he had a really strong memory, he could tell what little details might have changed. He got up, and noticed the portraits he made, unchanged and untouched.  
"Could it have all... been a dream?" he muttered to himself. As he began to believe that, he heard someone singing a lovely melody.

 _ **Nanairo no kaze fukarete  
tooi misaki wo mezashiteta**_

 _ **Yoake mae kikoeta MERODII**_  
 _ **Sore wa totemo natsukashii uta**_

 _ **Hisashi no sora he to habutaku toritachi**_  
 _ **Saa takarajima ni nukera chikamichi**_

 _ **Nanatsu no umi no rakuen**_  
 _ **Arasho no yoru no ato ni wa tsutaeru**_  
 _ **tame inochi ga mat umareru**_

 _ **Nanatsu no kumi no MERODIA**_  
 _ **Darerno ga itsuka wa koko wo**_  
 _ **Tabidatsu hi ga kitemo**_  
 _ **Watashi wa wasurenai**_

Having heard the voice, Ryu looked around to find the beautiful voice singing. When the voice sung the chorus, he spotted a yellow mermaid, the one who brought him to the underwater cave. He was entranced, his heart as wild as a bull on a rampage.  
When she had finished, he gasped, "You're real! I wasn't dreaming!" But then, the mermaid seemed to be saddened. Picking up on this, Ryu inquired, "What's the matter?"  
Turning from him, she replied, "I'm starting to think that this will be doomed to fail."  
"What?! Why would you think that?"  
"A friend of mine fell in love with a human. But, her lover left suddenly, afraid that he might cause only trouble for her when she revealed she was a Mermaid Princess. Her love ended in tragedy, and I'm afraid it will happen to us."  
"That won't happen!" Ryu refuted, "It can't happen!"  
"It did to her. She captured me, and caused great suffering to others."  
Kneeling beside her where the waves lapped the shore, he assured strongly, "That won't happen to you. To us. If you feel strongly for me, I will stay close to you."  
"Ryu, do you mean that?"  
"I do. I've already lost one person close to me. I won't lose another, no matter the reason." That brought her smile back. Ryu had to admit that he rather liked it when she smiled. It was a beautiful thing, one no sketch could ever capture. And thinking of sketches, Ryu told the mermaid to hang on for a moment as he went to his gear, then he returned with his sketchbook as he began to create. He didn't need a framework to draw off of, not this time. Being beside this mermaid, he could already envision what to draw. He allowed her to watch as he rubbed, traced, and filled in areas of his work. When it was done, the two gazed at an image of them both, facing each other as if underwater, with bubbles and beams of light drawn around them. To them, it looked almost as if they were about to embrace, or even kiss. Finished, Ryu pulled out a sealable plastic sleeve as he tore the page out of the book, setting it inside.  
"One sec." he gestured. Then, he pulled out the drawing he made the other day of the mermaid relaxing, and slid it in facing outward. This way, he could flip the sleeve and change which picture he viewed. "For you, to remember me should something happen." And he gave her his gift. The mermaid was beyond words for how she felt about this gift, beyond how elated it made her feel. So, heart a-flutter, she lunged into him, and their lips embraced. Ryu's brain instantly went to mush, and he returned her kiss. The two of them didn't want to break away from this, they so badly desired to remain here, with each other. Even so, the mermaid slowly broke away as she returned to the sea, the drawings held close.  
"I hope we meet again, Ryu." the mermaid bade before diving under the waves.  
Rising to his feet, Ryu whispered, "I have faith we will, mermaid-chan."

* * *

 **Kaito: Hey everyone! Makoto has come back!  
Hanon: He is? I wonder if he still knows Luchia's secret?  
Kaito: Waah! Makoto knows Luchia is a mermaid?!  
Hanon: Boy, Meru was right about you, Kaito. And she seems to have gone head over tail for him.  
Kaito: Meru?! But then, how- Grrr!**

Next time on Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo,  
The Younger Birds

 **Kaito: Makoto, you'd better be running right now!**


	20. The Younger Birds

**Meru: Konichiwa, mina-san. It's been some time, but we're back at last!**

 **Rina: Has it really been two years since our last chapter? Where does the time go?**

 **Meru: *moan* I thought this day would never come. I was waiting so long, and even AmethystPearl99-san mentioned this upcoming chapter in her story a year ago.**

 **Rina: Well, RSBCS-san has been busy with school and his new job. We should be happy he finally finished at all.**

 **Meru: E to, where is RSBCS-san anyway?**

 **RSBCS: *short whistle* Away from the rope please! Away from the rope!**

 **Rina: Over by that pool there. Working as hard as he can.**

 **Meru: I see. Well then, mina-san, thank you all for your patience with RSBCS-san. Now, let's begin!**

 **Rina: Before we do, RSBCS-san would like to remind everyone he does not own us or our show and manga. Just this story.**

 **RSBCS: *Long whistle blast, jumps into the pool***

 **Meru: *gasp* RSBCS-san, what's wrong?**

* * *

Chapter 20:

The Younger Birds

The beach was swimming in heat on a bright, sunny day. The boombox was beating the surfing tunes as two surfers tried shredding the current while beating the heat. Kaito and Daichi were practicing techniques for an upcoming surf competition Maki was hosting. However, Daichi quickly lost his balance and plunged into the surf. The waves carried him in their white wash all the way to shore. Pulling him and his board further up to avoid shore pounders, Noelle got him to sit up as he began hacking up water.

Are you alright Daichi?" Noelle inquired.

"Other than the ringing in my ears and my head somewhat spinning, yeah." Daichi chuckled, "Can't believe I ate it that badly though."

"Eat? What did you eat?"

"No Noelle. I mean I had a nasty wipeout. You sure you've been reading up on this stuff?"

"Hey! Surf lingo isn't as easy to pick up, I'll have you know."

"Oh! Well then, keep helping me with surfing, and I'll share the word."

"So long as that's the only thing you share besides how to fall." Kaito came in with a laugh, "You'll need to get better if you want to win the Rookie Contest tomorrow."

"Aw, give me a break Kaito!" Daichi whined, "Besides, it's not like you're competing too. You're just the exhibition."

"That's right!" Noelle perked up, "And that means Daichi can win it all."

"By the way Kaito, where's Luchia?" Daichi inquired. Before the champion could answer, the group heard shouting close to the road. And the ones responsible were Luchia and Meru, fighting over a basket.

"But I'm hungry!" Meru fussed.

"Meru, this bento isn't for you." Luchia shouted back. With a mighty tug, both girls fell back as the bento was flung into the air, spilling its food in the process. Panicking, Luchia and Noelle hurried to catch the food. Miaculously, they managed to catch every single piece, with nothing having been disturbed. One piece, a sausage, was about to fall into Meru's hand. But Noelle expertly kicked it away, right into Daichi's mouth, and down his stomach that was much to the young surfer's delight.

"Nice save Noelle." he cheered.

"Noelle-sama!" Meru complained, "Why did you do that? I'm so hungry."

"Meru, we've told you many times!" Luchia chastised, "The bento is for Kaito and Daichi."

"Aw! Luchia-sama!"

"Meru, Luchia and I worked very hard to make this for the guys to enjoy." Noelle explained, "Besides, you can't take food that doesn't belong to you."

Dejected but determined, Meru pleaded, "Then, can you at least share your bento if I hang out with you?"

Sadly, Luchia replied sternly, "I'm afraid that's not possible. We're gonna be very busy today."

Before Meru could challenge the statement, Noelle told her, "What Luchia means to say, is that we were hoping to spend our own quality time with the boys. It wouldn't be fair to you since we have our boyfriends with us." With the final nail in the coffin, Meru nodded somberly and in understanding as she started trodding off with her empty stomach.

Then suddenly, Meru heard Kaito call out, "Oi! Meru!" Turning to him, she had just enough time to catch what looked like a wrap. With a wink, he wished her a good meal, to which she graciously accepted as she resumed her departure.

"Now Daichi," Noelle started to say, "I noticed some things that maybe you could fix."

Stuffing his face, the teen replied, "Can't talk. Gotta eat." To which, Luchia and Kaito sighed in discomfort, seeing how this might not go so well.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

With the matter at the beach concluded, Meru returned to Pearl Piari as she tried to find someone else to hang out with. She looked to the back to see Coco and the new boy Ryu doing some art stuff on the patio, with Coco modeling different outfits and poses for the artist's upcoming contest. She had tried asking them before if she could join, but the Yellow Pearl Mermaid Princess denied her request kindly and suggested Luchia instead. Hanon was out at the amusement park with Nagisa, and Rina was going to the movies with Masahiro. That left her with Karen, Nikora, Taki, and Hippo. Figuring it was worth a shot, Meru went up to Karen's room to see if she'd be up to hanging out with her.

As she passed Subaru's room, Meru found the door slightly ajar, and noticed someone with purple hair inside. She stopped to overhear what was being said, but then found herself falling straight in and startling the occupants inside.

"M-Meru?!" Karen gasped.

"I'm sorry, Karen-sama." Meru said in reconciliation, "I didn't mean to barge in like this."

"Guess I forgot to close the door." Subaru replied with a chuckle, trying to make light of the situation.

Sighing, Karen asked, "What did you need Meru?"

"I wanted to see if you might let me hang around with you today. Please, Karen-sama."

"No can do Meru. I'm helping Subaru in his study today."

"I see. Then, please excuse me." Dejected once more, Meru bowed out of the room, and made sure to close the door properly. Just as she turned to go to her room, Meru bumped into Seira, who was dressed in her fancy attire for some odd reason.

So Meru asked, "Seira-sama, why are you dressed like that?"

"Meru, I told you the other day." Seira answered, "Hugo-san is treating me to a fancy dinner at his mansion."

"And he hasn't come yet?! How rude!" Meru huffed.

"He might have been busy with his parents. I think it's fine." Seira figured.

"Why do you still like him, Seira-sama? He's not that great of a human."

A little offended by the statement, Seira told her, "Meru, Hugo-san is greatly compassionate. Don't say bad stuff about him when you don't know what kind of a person he is."

At that point, Nikora called, "Seira, Hugo has arrived."

Before she left, Seira warned, "Don't let envy sink in Meru. I know why you don't like Hugo-san, but don't take it out on us, or anyone else." And with that, she went to meet up with Hugo out front. Meru then waited a bit before deciding to go to the park for the day.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

At the park, Meru sat on a bench as she watched everyone milling about around her. She honestly felt kind of hurt, but she did see where some of her friends were coming from. Truth was, she was envious. All the Mermaid Princesses now had boyfriends, and three of which were now Sea Princes. Meru was happy for them to be together, as she had been secretly hoping for this sort of thing to happen. Still, she felt so left out and isolated from them at the same time. Hippo was no help alleviating her of this dilemma, lecturing how she was the model of what the Mermaid Princesses should be. It was like she was his teacher's pet, and Meru hated it.

"I want to find love too." she grumbled to herself, "I want to meet someone, and fall for them. Then, if I can, I'd want them to discover my secret." Bowing her head, she prayed, "Aqua Regina-sama, help me find love! Let me fall in love with someone like Hanon-sama and everyone else!" She waited for a few minutes, expecting some kind of answer to come to her. But alas, she was left bitterly disappointed.

As she got up to leave, somebody bumped into her and knocked her down. She wasn't too terribly hurt, but it did make her feel even more depressed at her run of luck.

As she lay there, feeling like the world was against her, the person who bumped her said hastily, "Sorry! So sorry about that! Let me help you up!" As she was being helped up, Meru noticed the person was a boy, about her height and age, with scruffy-brown hair and hazel eyes, wearing a red T-shirt, and black board shorts. Once she set her eyes on the boy, Meru started feeling funny in a good way. Her heart rate picked up, her mind began to race, and she felt her hands tremble a little.

"There you go." The boy said after helping her back up, "Sorry about that."

"T-That's alright." Meru muttered aloud, feeling tight in her chest, "Thank you."

"You bet. Will you be alright?" he inquired.

"Y-Yes."

"Okay. See ya." Then the boy raced off. Meru had a hard time coming to grips with what just happened, but she had a sneaking suspicion about the reason behind it was. Her discovery made her totally elated, and she had the strong desire to find that boy again. So, with a squeal of delight, Meru gave chase.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Kaito downed the last of the curry Luchia made for him, and let out a satisfied sigh. He really liked Luchia's cooking, and her curry was especially amazing. Daichi had to down his whole water bottle just to settle the heat in his mouth, making Luchia and Kaito laugh. Even if his friend did not know Noelle's secret like he knew Luchia's, he really enjoyed this time together with them. Maybe one day Daichi would discover Noelle's other self, and maybe he could be her Sea Prince too. That would be the day.

While Noelle helped her surfer with a hot mouth, the group heard a voice cry out, "Kaito!" Running up to them was Kaito's cousin, Makoto, who looked rather eager to be with his relative.

"Hey Makoto!" Kaito called back. Luchia called out as well, recalling the boy that was trying to find mermaids at Maki's beach contest, which included her and her friends. Despite what happened, the two ended their encounter rather well when he had to go back home.

When Makoto reached the group, Kaito got up and introduced, "Daichi, Noelle, this is my cousin Makoto. He's going to be staying with me for a while."

"So cute!" Noelle squealed, "He just looks so adorable."

Shying behind Kaito, Makoto asked, "Kaito, who's she?"

With a giggle, Luchia told him, "That's just my friend Noelle. She's visiting from overseas."

"And you probably don't remember Daichi, but he's one of my friends from surfing."

Once introduced, Makoto replied with a bow, "It's very nice to meet you."

"Nice to see you too." Daichi returned.

"Likewise." Noelle replied, "Sorry for scaring you."

Makoto accepted her apology, then inquired of his cousin, "Are you gonna surf some more, Kaito?"

"Well, Luchia and I were gonna go do something else now, so-"

"Kaito, no way man!" Daichi interrupted his friend's statement, "Don't leave your little cousin to hang out with Luchia! You still got time to surf another round."

"Daichi, Luchia and I already planned this."

"C'mon! Say yes!" Then Daichi started making him bow as he continued to urge him to surf, making everyone else sweatdrop.

Finally, after much coercion, Kaito shook Daichi off and roared, "Enough! Fine, I'll do it!"

"Yay! This is so amazing!" Makoto cheered.

"Are you sure Kaito?" Luchia asked.

"Yeah." he muttered to her bitterly, "Besides, a man doesn't go back on his word."

"I guess not." Luchia said with a sigh.

The boys returned to the waves, coasting and slicing the great crests of water as they floated over them. The girls, along with Makoto, sat and spectated them practicing. No one seemed to mind the second round of surfing, not even Luchia. She did seem a little down about the whole change in plans, but she reasoned that she was at least still with Kaito. As for Makoto, he was pretty excited to see his cousin surfing once again. While watching, he snuck a glance at both of the girls. He remembered finding out that Luchia was a mermaid, but he had to keep silent so she wouldn't turn into bubbles. He wondered if his cousin ever found this out yet, or was even remotely aware of it for that matter. And with the other girl Noelle, he wondered if she could be a mermaid as well since she was Luchia's friend. He hoped to find out while he was here, at the place where he saw his first mermaid.

While they continued to watch the older boys shred, Makoto heard a girl from behind them speak, "Luchia-sama? Noelle-sama?" The three of them turned to find Meru standing there with a rather puzzled expression.

"Meru, what are you doing here?" Luchia inquired.

"Ano... Sono..." Meru stammered as she thought about how to ask them about Makoto. When she gathered her thoughts, she told them, "I wanted to know... if you know this boy."

"Makoto?" Luchia replied, "Why do you ask?"

"Oh hey, you're that girl I bumped into earlier." Makoto realized, "But, how do you know Kaito's girlfriend?"

Stepping in, Noelle explained, "Well, Meru comes from the same place as one of Luchia's friends, Hanon. And Meru, Makoto is Kaito's little cousin."

"Cousin?" Meru quizzed.

Gesturing for Luchia to lean in, Makoto whispered in her ear, "Luchia-san, is she a mermaid like you?"  
Panicking a tad, Luchia covered his mouth with a titter before whispering to him, "That's not really something to be said out loud, you know." Her sudden and bizarre behavior puzzled the other two, which prompted her to let go and give a nervous chuckle. At that point, Kaito and Daichi came up to the group to find Meru among them.

"Ah Meru. you came back." Kaito regarded with a smile, "And I see you met my cousin, Makoto."

"Um... yeah." she affirmed hesitantly. Then for some reason, she started to blush a tad, and felt her heart begin to race. She started to feel out of place and unsure of herself, especially when looking at Makoto.

Daichi noticed her face turning red, and cheered, "Yahoo! Must be a fire going on between those two."

Makoto kinda tensed at the comment, but Meru was so flustered she protested, "I-It isn't like that! Don't assume!"

"Meru, denial only makes it more true." Noelle said with a giggle.

"I mean it! Grr! I'm going home!" And she stormed off in a fit. Before Daichi could continue the embarrassment, Kaito smacked him on the back of the head.

"What were you thinking?" he chided, "That was a very baka move to pull."

"Sorry. I thought it was pretty obvious though." Daichi tried to reason.

"Obvious, but inappropriate at the time." Noelle chimed in.

"Yet you encouraged it as well." Luchia pointed out with a frigid tone. With the matter over, everyone decided to head home for the day. And with that, everyone decided to head home for the day.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Back at Kaito's place, Makoto sat in the living room as he waited for dinner to be finished. As he waited he let his mind wander back to his daydreams about mermaids. His fantasy actually started from the story his cousin told him about how he was saved by a mermaid when he was young. It was that story that gave him the drive to find one in Kaito's neighborhood during his last stay. In doing so, he found out Luchia's secret, and promised to keep it that way. But he had to wonder if Kaito has figured out about his mermaid by now.

"Makoto, food's ready." Kaito announced, setting down a simple meal for them to enjoy. The young boy eagerly went to the table, and was about to dig in when Kaito cleared his throat.

Remembering his manners, Makoto bowed his head and said begrudgingly, "Itadakimasu." With that, the two dug in. Partway through, Makoto asked, "Hey Kaito, can I ask you about that mermaid again?"

Giving a slight chuckle, Kaito replied, "Still trying to find one of your own?"

"Well, uh... um... I just wanted to know if you ever found her again." Makoto could see his cousin was hesitant to answer. The story of how he had been saved by a mermaid had never been such a tough subject between them. So for Kaito to not reply right away told Makoto that either he lost her, or he discovered who she really was. But he could figure that his cousin did find out who his mermaid was.

When he finally did answer, Kaito simply said, "Yeah."

"Great! Was it Lu-" But Kaito gave him a hard stare, shutting him up in an instant. Makoto could tell just from that that it was a warning, and he did remember about the rule of not revealing a mermaid's identity to anyone else lest they turn to bubbles. Once his message was made, Kaito softened his gaze and they resumed eating, though the younger cousin was still curious on if he knew his mermaid was Luchia.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Back at Pearl Piari, Meru was resting up in Hanon's bathtub, filling it to the brim with bubbles. Once she was done, she sank down a bit while keeping her head above water. As she relaxed in the warm water, Meru thought back to the boy she met today. Not only was she thinking about how she felt when she met him, but she was also contemplating what it meant that he was Kaito's relative. It was a bit of a weird situation for her, considering her previous pursuit for love. Even so, just the thought of Makoto made her face warm.

While she was lost in thought, Hanon came into her room and announced, "Meru, I'm back." But the younger mermaid did not respond. She was fixated on the boy she met that day. So Hanon came into the bathroom after having not received an answer, and found her with a goofy grin on her face. "Meru." she called out. "Answer me."

Finally snapping to, Meru faced the Aqua Mermaid Princess and replied, "Oh Hanon-sama."

"What's with that kind of response? You get sick or something?"

Holding her hand over her heart, Meru answered, "Yes. I am lovesick."

Her interest catching on, Hanon inquired, "Oh. Found some boy to like? What's his name?" Meru muttered the name, but Hanon couldn't hear what it was. "What was that?"

"Makoto." Meru repeated a bit louder. At first, Hanon was confused by the answer. The name did ring out to her in familiarity, but it didn't bring up anything especially memorable.

Still, she smirked and told Meru, "That's great. I bet he's a lucky guy."

As she was just about to leave, she heard the young mermaid mutter aloud, "I just can't believe he's Kaito's cousin." At that, the mermaid princess was hit with a recollection of said individual.

Once it passed, Hanon nervously asked, "Ano... What was it you said earlier Meru?"

"I was saying that Makoto was Kaito's cousin." Meru repeated for her, then asked, "Is something the matter Hanon-sama?"

"No no. Not at all." Hanon assured, "Just curious." And she left. And Meru went back to daydreaming about the boy she met today.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

The next day, Meru was looking through a magazine featuring romantic spots for young couples. She admired each page she turned to, letting out soft squeals of delight every now and then. Observing her were Hanon, Luchia, and Seira, all perplexed by this recent change in the young aqua mermaid.

"So Hanon, Meru really likes Makoto?" Luchia asked her friend.

"Nope. It's love. I'd know that behavior anywhere. I knew it with Hippo, I knew it with Taki-san, and I definitely know it with Meru." Hanon answered.

Still unsure about things, Seira wondered aloud, "But why Makoto? I thought Meru didn't like falling in love, and just supported everyone but me."

"That's what I want to know." Hanon said with a huff. Just then, the hotel phone rang.

Nikora picked up and answered, "Hello. Pearl Piari." After a few seconds, she called, "Meru, someone is calling you." Curious about the news, the young girl abandoned her perusing to see who was calling her.

"Hello. This is Meru." she said once she got the phone.

 _Oh! H-Hi Meru. It's Ma-Makoto._ she heard Kaito's cousin respond.

"H-Hi Makoto!"

 _Are you b-busy at all today? I'd like to walk around the area, but I don't know the place very well. And Kaito is out at his surfing competition.  
_

"So you want me to show you around?" Meru assumed.

 _Yes. I-If that's alright.  
_

"Yes! I'd love to. I'll meet you at your place."

 _Oh. I was going to come and get you._ As the two continued talking, the three mermaid princesses just kept on observing.

"Do you know Makoto from before?" Seira inquired of her friends.

"Well, yes." Luchia told her. "Makoto ended up interrupting an event Maki-san was putting to find mermaids after Kaito told him about the time I saved him."

"And that was the last we saw of him." Hanon chimed in.

"At least now until when Meru ran into him." Seira reminded. Before Hanon could return the jab, Meru had hung up and taken off for something.

"Now where is she going?" Hanon mused suspiciously. And with that, she left Luchia and Seira's company and followed after her. And this made the two girls very worried for Makoto.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Once they met up, Meru and Makoto began walking downtown to explore. Meru led the way most of the time, taking Makoto to many of the sights her friends showed to her. Most of them they skipped at the boy's urging, but the ones they did check out made the day even more enjoyable. And following behind them at a distance was Hanon. The Mermaid Princess felt a bit suspicious of Makoto considering events last time. She didn't want to take any chances that the boy might try to find out Meru's secret.

While the two stopped to eat at a nearby cafe, Hanon took a seat a bit away from them, hiding her face behind a menu.

Taking a peek, she muttered, "Makoto hasn't tried to discover Meru's secret yet. They just look like they are on a date." While she was spying, Nagisa just happened to pass by and noticed her at the cafe. So he took a seat next to her, unaware of what she was doing.

"Hanon, why are you eating at this cafe? You don't like the food they serve here." he asked her. Panicking, Hanon dragged her boyfriend behind the menu to hide from the young couple she was spying on.

"Baka! Keep your voice down." Hanon chided. Calming down, she whispered, "I'm watching Meru and Makoto to see what they do."

"In other words, you're spying." Nagisa summarized. But Hanon neither confirmed or denied his statement.

Rather, she requested, "Just follow me and help keep an eye on them. I fell like Makoto might try and see if Meru is a mermaid." That got Nagisa's attention, even though he had no idea how this Makoto would consider Meru a mermaid. Still, he did want to help Hanon make sure on of her mermaids was protected, so he agreed to her plea.

Meanwhile, not too far from where they were, Lady Bat and Arara were walking down the street, disguised as normal humans. They had been failing to capture the mermaid princesses far too often for Dr. Hishki's liking, and decided to investigate the surface for an opportunity to succeed in their endeavor. Linhua was somewhere else, presumably doing an errand for the doctor.

"The doctor is certainly getting fed up with all our failures." Lady Bat said with a sigh.

"Yeah!" Arara moaned in reply, "and those Triple Threat boys don't seem to get punished at all, even though they fail worse than we do. Stupid robots!"

"We need to come up with a plan to capture those Mermaid Princesses." Lady Bat informed, trying to concoct an idea.

"Don't forget those boys with the Mermaid Princesses." Arara reminded, "they seem to always be beside them now." During her pondering, Lady Bat happened to glance to her right, and spotted Meru and Makoto at the cafe, though she didn't know who they were. Lady Bat thought the girl looked familiar from one of her attempts to capture the Aqua Pearl Mermaid Pearl. Noticing her ally having stopped, Arara turned around and inquired, "Lady Bat, what is it?"

"I believe I might know a way to get back at those mermaids, and take care of the boys as well." Her comrade's attention snared, Lady Bat continued, "That girl over there looks like one of the Aqua Mermaid Princess's subjects. If we can capture her, catching the Mermaid Princess and beating her boyfriend will be made even more easily."

Arara looked over at the cafe, then pointed out, "That boy! He's following them." She pointed to Nagisa, and Lady Bat let an evil smile cross her face.  
"Perfect." Lady Bat mumbled evilly, "Now for a plan of action."

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

After the cafe, Makoto and Meru began walking towards another area of the toen. Hanon and Nagisa followed at a relative distance, though the former was doing everything she could to appear like she wasn't tailing her friend. For the time being, it seemed as though Meru was just showing Makoto around, while the young boy gazed around whenever she directed his attention. The two appeared to be enjoying themselves in this time, but the mermaid princess still felt wary.

As they walked down a nearby market alley, the two youths heard someone call out, "Come one, come all to get a special prize." They turned to see a female worker with bright-green hair manning a stall filled with gift boxes. Curious, they ventured over to see what this was all about. Noticing their approach, the employee regarded, "Good afternoon! Would you like to try your luck at one of our surprise? You might just get a rare prize for your troubles."

Enthralled by the prospect, Meru asked the shopkeeper, "Can we try it please?"

"But of course. Cute couples get one free." With that, she handed one to Makoto. The boy opened it up, then showed what was inside to Meru: A pair of passes to a nearby karaoke place.

"Sugoi!" Meru cheered at the prize. Then she and Makoto bowed to the stand attendant and thanked her for the gift, while said attendant stuttered a reply back, before they walked off.

Next, while the pair were walking past the arcade. Meru spotted an aqua-blue seal stuffed animal inside the crane. Squealing, she dragged Makoto over so he could get it for her. Begrudgingly, Makoto put in the yen needed to start a game. As the two were so focused on the game, a feminine figure with ebony hair held in a thin ponytail began sneaking up behind them, a bucket of water raised above her head.

But just when she was about to drop it on top of the two, the youths cried out, "Yatta!" and threw their arms up. The action startled the figure and caused her to lose her grip on the bucket, and got drenched by her own trick. She quickly retreated as the two retrieved their prize and left the arcade.

The two finally ended up at the beach, with the sun still shining bright and high. As they continued to walk, they began to realize how hot they were.

"Man, it's so hot." Makoto moaned.

"Maybe we should get something to drink." Meru suggested, fanning herself to keep cool. They didn't notice any place to grab some sort of beverages, until Meru pointed out a stand further down the road. Unbeknownst to the two as they hurried over, Hanon and Nagisa followed behind. At the stand, the two were greeted by a pair of attendants, one with green hair and one that had ebony hair. The two were strangely familiar somehow, the green-haired one more so as Meru thought about it.

"Welcome." the green-haired attendant greeted chipperly, snapping Meru out of her thoughts, "How may we help you?"

"Hello." Meru returned with similar enthusiasm, "Do you have anything to drink?"

"We have soda for sale." the ebony-haired attendant informed, "Would you like that?"

"Hai! Demo, we don't have that much money." In fact, both youths barely had two-hundred yen between the two of them.

Placing two bottles before them, the ebony-haired attendant told them, "Daijoubuu. Cute couples get one soda each for free for their first time." Ecstatic, the two thanked them for their generosity, and walked over to a nearby bench to rest. Once they had opened them up, the two began to drink.

But before the bottle even touched her lips, Meru's drink was slapped right out of her hand. Shocked at the sudden occurrence, she looked up to find Hanon returning her hand to her side, the culprit of the travesty that had just taken place.

"Hanon-sama, why'd you do that?!" she cried in outrage.

Giving her a strict look, Hanon told her, "How can you forget something like that Meru? You know what soda does to you."

"It's not like it would hurt me." Meru tried to argue.

Grabbing the young girl's arm, Hanon turned to Makoto and told him in a sweet voice, "Sumimasen Makoto. I just need to talk with Meru in private." And she dragged her a bit of a ways away before the boy could protest. Once she had met back up where Nagisa was waiting, she let go of Meru.

"Hanon-sama, you're ruining our date!" Meru whined.

"Yeah Hanon, that might not have been the best way to handle that." Nagisa added, "What's the harm with a little soda?"

With a giant 'huff,' Hanon told them, "When a mermaid drinks soda, it causes her to act delirious and not think straight. What do you think that would make you do?" Meru gasped at the revelation, understanding the implications it meant for her and Makoto. She felt so ashamed not to have known that such a simple drink could do so much harm.

Something didn't add up though, so Nagisa asked, "How do you know it would do something like that? How come Meru didn't know?"

"We really only found out the effects after coming on land." Hanon explained, "After we stopped Mikeru, we threw a party at the hotel to celebrate. Luchia ended up drinking some soda, and we saw what happened. It almost got out of control." Nagisa shuddered at the thought, but the mermaid princess's words dug even deeper into Meru, who collapsed to her knees. If she hadn't been stopped, she might have done something similar with Makoto. She could have even...

Her wallowing didn't last much longer, as they heard Makoto cry out in alarm. The three turned to see the stand attendants making for the beach, with the boy slung over the ebony-haired attendant's shoulder. The three pursued in hopes of stopping them, but stopped when the women went under the waves before they could reach them.

"Makoto!" Meru called out. She made a move to go after them, but was stopped by Nagisa.

"If you dive in to rescue him, you'll turn into bubbles." Nagisa reminded, "We can handle this."

"But..."

"Meru, stay here." Hanon commanded. And with that, the Aqua duo dove in. Meru looked on in worry, a fist over heart. This was how it always was for her: always on the sidelines, always left out of everything. However this time, she decided she would not stand idly by. So she dove in after them.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Diving deep down, Lady Bat and Arara were carting off an unconscious Makoto, fuming at their turn of events. Every trap they laid out to capture who they thought looked like one of the Aqua mermaids of the South Atlantic kingdom had failed somehow in some shape or form. From the failed 'gift' at the gift box stall, to the bucket fiasco in the arcade, to even having the soda they gave smacked away. Their patience wore thin after the third failure, so they stole the human in hopes of provoking the Mermaid Princess out of hiding. Once they were deep enough, they looked at their captive with glowering faces.

"So useless!" Arara griped, "All we have for Hishki-sama is this human boy. I doubt he even knows anything about the Mermaid Princesses."

Looking closer at the captive, Lady Bat told her, "Perhaps not. But he could prove useful in drawing them out There is more than one way to skin a cat."

"Eww! Who wants to skin a cat?!"

"Not the point Arara. Now, to bring this boy to Hishki-sama."

"We won't let you!" came the voice of the Aqua Pearl Mermaid Princess. She and Nagisa faced their adversaries once they arrived, expressions hardened for the confrontation.

Giving a wicked smile, Lady Bat returned, "There you are, Mermaid Princess. And your annoying little guardian too."

"Hey, I'm a Sea Prince!" Nagisa shot back.

"Nagisa." Hanon sternly chided. Once he relinquished, she demanded, "Let the boy go. Aren't I what you want?"

"Indeed you are." the bat demon said passively, "So I suppose we have no need for this garbage." At that she discarded Makoto Hanon and Nagisa, who in turn caught him and checked to see he was alright, just unconscious. But as she did, she and Arara started up their dark songs. Rather than the one they used with their weather machine, the songs that played were their own personal songs; "Alluring Darkness" and "Oh Yeah!" They sang their songs with overwhelming might to subdue the aqua duo. But barely halfway into the songs, Hanon noticed that they didn't hurt as much. Nagisa wasn't even being affected by the songs dark power either. When the water demons finished, they were perplexed by the lack of agony or loss of energy normally found in their foes.

"What's going on?!" Arara demanded, "You should be on your last legs."

"Guess we're a bit too tough for you." Nagisa retorted, hiding his own bewilderment. then they all heard Meru call out to Makoto as she approached the group. Before Hanon could scold her for disobeying, Nagisa told her to return to the surface with Makoto. Almost immediately, Meru took the boy with her to shore while the pair returned their attention to the water demons.

"Now it's our turn!" Hanon declared. And the two began to transform.

 ** _"Aqua Pearl Voice!"_**

With the melody beginning to play, Nagisa spoke, "Trying to go after us is unforgivable. Especially using an innocent boy like that."

"Now we'll punish you with our song of love." Hanon finished. Both water demons flinched at the implication as the duo called,

"Pichi Pichi Voice, Duet Start!" And they song Hanon's song, "Azure Blue."

 _Sore ha egaku kagayaku_

 _Daisuke ga ano umi wo_

 _Mirai wo mamaru chikara wo afurete_

 _Aisubeki ito ga ita_

 _Aisubeki basho ga aru_

 _Hirameku ano sa_

 _Ima no kinochi mamade_

 _Mamaru tame ni_

The two water demons were shocked by the power that the aqua pair alone had. It was like they were in a whole other league for some reason.

Once finished, Hanon and NAgisa called out, "Love Shower Pitch! Encore wa ika ga?"

"I have had enough of you!" Lady Bat yelled, "You singing together ticks me off!"

"We wouldn't have lost with all three of us together!" Arara added angrily. With that, they disappeared in their usual fashion.

That's when Hanon recalled, "Meru!" Reverting to her mermaid form, she yanked Nagisa with her to the surface.

"Hanon, you're gonna rip my arm off!" Nagisa shouted as they jetted for the surface.

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

Back on land, Makoto slowly began to regain consciousness. As he slowly opened his eyes, he spotted an aqua mermaid watching over him. Her face lit up upon his recovery, which caused Makoto to beam as he shot up.

"Careful." the mermaid urged, "You were hurt pretty bad."

"Another mermaid?!" he exclaimed.

Perturbed by his statement, the mermaid inquired, "What do you mean by, 'another mermaid?' Have you met someone else before?" At that, Makoto slapped his hands over his mouth. He almost let slip about Luchia. Though this mermaid probably knew already who she was, him knowing was a big risk.

So he shook his head, and told her, "Never mind. Arigato gozaimasu, Mermaid-san." Thinking it might be safe to attempt to know if this mermaid knew what he knew, he asked, "E to, do you know of somebody named Luchia?"

"What?! How do you know about Luchia-sama?!" Meru gasped in surprise.

"So you do know her!" Makoto declared, "That's so cool!" But in his celebration, the boy noticed the panicked look on the mermaid's face. Worried for her, he asked in a calmer tone, "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Y-You Kn-Know Luchia-s-sama? she stuttered in fear.

"Yeah." Makoto answered, "I met her over a year ago while visiting my cousin Kaito."

"You're Kaito-sama's cousin too?!" she exclaimed. The sudden outburst surprised Makoto a great deal. But that started a chain of thoughts about how this mermaid could have known his cousin Kaito. If she knew Luchia, then he supposed it made some sense. But human and mermaid relationships wouldn't be well-liked by the mermaids, so Luchia wouldn't go and blab it out to them. So that left how she could have learned who Kaito was, let alone how she regarded him with the specific honorific.

That was when Makoto began to take a closer look at the mermaid beside him. Her appearance, how she behaved, even how she regarded Luchia. It was almost like...

"Mermaid-san, are you Meru?" he guessed. The mermaid hung her head in distraught. Feeling more concerned as well as confident in his assumption, Makoto asked again, "Meru, is that you?" Again, the mermaid made no response. The boy then grabbed her shoulders as he grew frantic. "Meru, tell me it's you. Please Meru!" Tears began to pour down his face as he began to think something was wrong. Or, that the mermaid he called Meru would turn into bubbles. That is until,

"You realized."

Brought out of his growing fear, Makoto froze.  
"M-Meru?" he muttered out weakly.

The Meru finally looked up at him, tears spilling down her own face and told him, "You realized who I am!"

At this, Makoto suddenly hugged Meru close to him and cried, "Meru!" Meru returned the hug, and the two remained that way for a time. As he did, Makoto mumbled, "I found... my own mermaid. I finally found my mermaid."

Meru buried her face into his shoulder, replying, "And I found someone to love too. I am so happy."

Sadly, the moment ended when they heard Kaito's voice call out, "Makoto!"

And right after was Luchia shouting, "Meru!" The two youths separated and turned to the sea wall, just in time to see the teens spotting them and hurrying down to meet with them.

"There you are Makoto." Kaito said once they approached, a slight edge evident in his voice, "You were taking too long to get back home. What were you doing?"

"Kaito. G...Gomenasai." the boy responded.

"Kaito-sama, it's my fault. Forgive me." Meru interceded.

At that, Makoto turned to her and asked, "Wait Meru, how do you know my cousin? Besides he's Luchia-san's boyfriend."

"I met him over a year ago too, before he found out about Luchia's secret." Meru answered with a smile.

"Wait! My cousin now knows Luchia's secret?!" Makoto exclaimed, "So awesome!"

Perplexed, Kaito wondered aloud, "Hold on. What's going on?"

giggling, Luchia answered, "It seems Makoto figured out Meru's secret. And he knew mine before you did." This shocked Kaito immensely, which caused the two youths to laugh at his expense. That is until the elder boy looked upon his cousin with an almost evil glint in his eyes.

"Makoto, I'm gonna GET YOU!" And with a scream of terror, Makoto raced off as he was chased by Kaito, with the girl's cheering them on.

While in the sea, Hanon and Nagisa watched everything unfold, their heads just above the surface of the water.

"He figured it out in one day." Hanon said, sounding unimpressed.

"Well, at least we don't have to hide the truth from him anymore." Nagisa figured, "And we don't need to worry about anyone turning into bubbles."

"Stil, we better watch them." Hanon suggested, crossing her arms, "I don't think they can handle this kind of relationship for long."

"Geez Hanon," Nagisa said with a moan, "you make it sound like you want them to fail." And they continued to watch the chaos ensue."

 **xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx**

 **Seira:** The Swan Lake as a play?  
 **Noelle:** Ooh, what a stroke of luck Seira. This has never been done before.  
 **Seira:** Yeah. But Hugo is playing Prince Siegfried.  
 **Noelle:** *squeal* Seira, you'll play Princess Odette, right? Right?  
 **Seira:** I will. But will this work out?

 **Next time on Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Duo,**  
Reluctant Princess

 **Seira:** Hugo... I'm afraid I'll fail.


End file.
